Joy rang out from a church tower when a bellringing team from throughout Wokingham borough succeeded in their attempt to ring a full peal.
They spent three hours and four minutes ringing the eight bells at St Nicholas Church, Hurst, each one 5,088 times, in a different order each time.
It was a big moment for Hurst villagers who had heard the first full peal by local ringers since 2011 and the first full peal at the church since 2016. They praised the “joyous sound”.
For a successful attempt at a full peal there are no eating or comfort breaks and no stopping or visual aids. It’s all done by keeping the order in your head.
For young ringer James, 16, a pupil at Holme Grange School, Wokingham, it was a break from exams.
After the full peal last Saturday he said: “I find ringing relaxing. You have to concentrate so hard on what you are doing. I’m taking mock GCSEs at the moment and I’m ringing almost every day because it’s so relaxing.”
It appears to work. James, who lives in Wokingham and rings at All Saints Church in the town and St Bartholomew’s at Arborfield, seemed unfazed by the prospect of Maths and History exams on Monday.
Bellringing leaves its mark on you, literally. James displayed his red and calloused hands, calmly saying that the concentration required meant he didn’t notice tiredness or injuries. He added: “You can soak your hands in white spirit, but that dries them out.”
He first rang bells when he was 11, starting properly when he was 13.
Ringing with James last Saturday was David Maynard, who lives and rings in Wokingham. He rang his 1,000th peal at St Mary-le-Bow in the City of London. The church’s ‘Great Bell of Bow’ appears in the medieval nursery rhyme Oranges and Lemons.
He said: “If you don’t have callouses and ring a big peal you can really rip your hands to pieces.”
Becki Shuttleworth, 14, of Woodley, who goes to St Joseph’s College, Reading and rings at St Andrew’s, Sonning was the youngest team member on Saturday. It was her second full peal.
The conductor of the peal was Nigal Mellor, of Wokingham, and who rings at All Saints Church there. He praised the ringers. “Everyone rang well,” he said. The composition was called Cambridge Surprise Major.
The other team members were Hurst’s tower captain Graham Slade of Woodley, Simon Farrar of Hurst who rings at St Marys Twyford, John Harrison who lives and rings in Wokingham and Nicola Lee from Barkham.
Learning to ring is not the daunting task it sounds, you gradually learn the component parts. Anyone interested can contact Graham on 07762 922 172.
