Saturday, 29th December 2018 saw some 25 Lilliputters abandon their cold turkey sandwiches and wend their way up the M4 (or the GWR!) for our inaugural Christmas Outing.
The first tower was Twyford, a short train ride out of Reading. The bells were cast in 1913 by Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel, and were a good start to the day. They handle well and sound OK, slightly better outside than in. Ringing here ranged from call changes to three leads of Bristol, with all abilities here catered for. Featured here are Grandsire Triples (inside), Grandsire Major (outside, and not my suggestion for once!!), and the “girls band” call changes (with Connor guesting on the treble!).
A short and simple train ride back into town turned into a thirty minute wait at Twyford station, which gave Alex, Steph and Harry a chance to admire the trains, and others among us a chance to build a human pyramid! No handbells today, thank goodness!
Once at Reading, we wandered down to St Giles, to find those who were using their cars had started without us! This wasn’t a problem however as it meant everyone could have a couple of rings in the time allowed. The bells here are another Whitechapel ring, the back 6 dating from 1793 and the trebles from 1890, and overhauled in 1975. They sound good, are easy to ring, and are crystal clear in the ringing chamber. A touch of Grandsire Triples is featured here, although the highlight was the touch of Bristol and Superlative spliced!
After a convivial lunch break, the next tower was the 12 at St Laurence, the only ring of 12 in Berkshire, and where the first peal in the county was rung (on 8th July 1734!). The bells were recast into a ring of 10 by Robert Catlin in 1748; since then, many of the bells have been recast again (only the present 4-7 bells remain), and the augmentation to 12 came in 1929. They are a real mixed bag of bells that work well as an old fashioned ring, albeit with some weird acoustics when you stand near the door! Here, the group acquitted themselves very well, with a number of call changes and Plain Hunts brought round. A bob course of Grandsire Cinques was also rung, and, for something different, “Double Minor” - being Plain Bob Minor being rung concurrently on the front and back six!
Another walk out of town took us to Caversham, a pretty light eight on the outskirts of the city, and with a fine view of a stunning sunset. The tight little ringing room meant we had to take turns, and this gave some social time outside, listening to the bells. Tiredness was starting to creep in here, although the touch of Grandsire Triples (featured here) was very decent, and the latter end of some Stedman Triples and some Bob Major (outside) are also included. We also gave out our Secret Santa gifts here, and had the group photo taken, before wandering back into town and finishing the day off in the Wetherspoons - where else?!
That’s all for 2018 folks, and here’s to 2019! :-)