Bristol Surprise Major at St Michael, Bath, Somerset

Three leads of Bristol being rung by The Lilliputters Guild during our outing to Bath on Saturday, 18th March 2023. St Michael’s church, with its spire reaching 180 foot (55m), is the fourth church on this present site. It was built in the early 1830s, designed by George Manners, and believed to be based (in part at least) on the Lady Chapel in Salisbury Cathedral. It is a fine albeit somewhat unusual looking building, with no louvres in the spire, but actively used, with a café operating most days. The bells are a fine, old-style eight, which sound very deep for their comparatively light weight. Cast in 1757 by Abel Rudhall of Gloucester (albeit the tenor was recast just two years later, in 1759), they were transferred from the previous church, where they had replaced a previous ring of six. The bells were hung in a new frame by Warners of Cripplegate in 1912, who also recast the 2nd and 7th at this time; the 6th was later recast by Taylors in 1952. The last major work on the bells was a rehanging, by Eayre and Smith, in 1995. As expected, they handle very smoothly, although the tenor is extremely light-set, and are regularly rung. Like at neighbouring Bathwick, the sallies of blue, white and black reflect those of the local Bath Rugby team. Tenor 14-1-9 in Eflat https://dove.cccbr.org.uk/detail.php?...