Concert from The Church Of St Nicolai, Leipzig (DVD)

St Brides the Wedding Cake Church

Advantages: free, interesting crypt, peaceful
Disadvantages: not so many memorials to look at

Have you ever wondered how the tiered wedding cake came about? Look no further than the distinctive spire of St Brides just off Fleet Street. An 18th century baker William rich used the three tired spire as inspiration in a range of wedding cakes and it has became the standard ever since. However there is so much more to this delightful little church which I often visit to get away from it all. Saint Bride's has a long and interesting history. Named after Saint Bridget, a 5th century Irish saint who turned well water into beer (a nice party trick me thinks and always a welcome guest) there has been at least been seven church buildings on the site since Saxon times. Being on Fleet Street it is known as the Journalist's church and it is associated with a number of literary figures such as Boswell, Dryden, Lovelace, the diarist Evelyn ...

duskmaiden 15.07.2009 · Read full review
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Review of St Bride's Church

Another church called St Mary's

Advantages: Lots of history, free to visit
Disadvantages: None for me

I would hazard a guess that St Mary's is probably the most common church name in England. Where I live in Sheffield there is a large parish church on the fringe of the city centre called St Mary's and within a 5 mile radius of my house there are at least two other churches that bear that same name. About a decade ago I lived in a 16th century cottage under the shadow of another St Mary's in Chesterfield which is more commonly known as The Crooked Spire, but the St Mary's Church that I now see from my window is the one at Hansdworth. If you mention St Mary's Church round here it can certainly be confusing exactly which church you are actually talking about. Historically Handsworth was a small hamlet, which is mentioned in the Doomsday Book of 1089 although nowadays it has been absorbed into the sprawling suburbs of the city of Sheffield ...

micksheff 01.03.2009 · Read full review
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Review of St Mary's Church, Handsworth, Sheffield

St Mary's Church, Scarborough

Advantages: Fantastic architecture, lots of history, free to visit
Disadvantages: Limited opening hours

Any visitor to the East Yorkshire resort of Scarborough will know that its castle dominates its skyline but in my opinion, The Church of St Mary adjacent to the ruins of the castle is almost just as impressive. Perched high on top of the hillside, like its more famous neighbour, the castle, this church is a landmark that can be seen from miles around. The Church of St Mary is the largest church in the town and it is the parish church of Scarborough. It is a large church and a grand one by any standards, indeed it is as large and grand as many cathedrals that I know. From the outside the first thing that struck me when I visited here a few weeks ago was how neat and tidy its church yard was. This might have something to do with the fact that the graveyard is the burial place of the 19th century writer Anne Bronte and in recent years ...

micksheff 21.09.2008 · Read full review
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Review of St Mary's Church, Scarborough