The event was masterminded by Martin Creed and the aim was to ring all the bells in the country as quickly and loudly as possible for 3 minutes. It was timed to be exactly 12 hours before the opening ceremony of the Games, which starts at 20:12 this evening.

At St. Michael’s Church, Boldmere in Sutton Coldfield we chimed the heaviest 6 of our 8 church bells.  An official Olympic volunteer at the football in Coventry, Debbie, came along in her (very smart) uniform to support us and took the picture below (I’m the one in the middle with the black T-shirt).

All this Olympic mania made me wonder what happened to the 100 chosen to be ‘Olympic Storytellers’ after the invitation for us all to apply last year. I wasn’t successful and have heard nothing about it since. But a quick trawl of the web has thrown up the Olympic Story Tellers’ Website. Here each of selected writers has published their news and views of the Olympics. There are poems, photographs and blog posts – take a look if you get a minute.

Day six was going to be a visit to Tredegar House, the NT house near Newport, but the shopping bug overtook us and we (Robin) ended up buy a new iPad with 3G instead.

Day seven was spent around the house sorting things and generally pottering. Jackie had turned on the grounds that it looked like we would be able to get the boats on the following day as the river levels had dropped sufficiently for the powers that be to be optimistic of a run. We were advised to take our Royal Yachting Association Inland Waterways Helmsman Certificates – the boatyard was, to say the least, surprised that we had 3 crew members with them!

What colour the wheel changes to and how much of it is lit up will reflect an analysis of millions of UK tweets for whether they are broadly positive or broadly negative.

Which strikes me as a bit of a gamble. Presumably the object is to show that people are enjoying the endeavour, but my own sense is that most aren’t. There are two people in particular in my Facebook timeline who are enthusiastic about the Olympics, but then they both have jobs at the games and so Mandy Rice Davies applies. Everyone else is spectacularly Eeyorish about it, as this wonderful New York Times piece explains:

LONDON — While the world’s athletes limber up at the Olympic Park, Londoners are practicing some of their own favorite sports: complaining, expecting the worst and cursing the authorities.

Asked “What do you feel about the Olympics?” the other day, a random sampling of people here gave answers that included bitter laughter; the words “fiasco,” “disaster” and “police state”; and detailed explanations of how they usually get to work, how that is no longer possible and how very unhappy that makes them.

The piece goes on to describe the Daily Mail as having the unofficial motto “What Fresh Hell is This?”

One of the main reasons for emulating the anhedonic donkey is there are just so many reasons why the Olympics might make you feel grumpy: the London focus; the cost to the taxpayer; the militarisation; the sponsors (“some of the worst corporations in the world“; the stuff about brand protection – whether or not true; and the exhortation only to write nice things about the Olympic website.

I am hardly the person to be objective on the issue of the Olympics as I don’t actually like sport of any kind at all – and yet even I have been a little tempted to try and get tickets to something to see what all the fuss is about. Far less to actually watch any sport happening – I really don’t give a rat’s ass – but I am quite keen to see what all the fuss is and see the Olympic Park from a urban planning perspective. It featured on Gardener’s Question Time and sounded interesting. I’ve visited, for example, Munich’s Olympic Park, mainly to climb the Olympiaturm, and that piqued my interest. How long will it be – if ever – before London’s Olympic Park is opened to a wider public? Will anyone ever be able to climb the crumpled rollercoaster without an event ticket, or will the whole thing be dismantled and boarded up as soon as the Paralympics wheel out of town? (Loads of tickets left for the Paralympics, if you wanted to get to see the site and/or experience the Arabfly Dangleway.)

When the torch came to town, I did sort of go and see what all the fuss was about – by being a bellringer for the occasion as the torch came past one of the churches I ring at regularly anyway. I was grudgingly impressed by the huge number of people who turned out to see it, and the city was incredibly fortunate with the weather – just hours before, rain had beaten the torch back into the van in Mansfield, soaking dozens of the kids I taught a few months ago, and yet in Nottingham the glorified cigarette lighter got blazing sunshine.

It’s just my abiding thought about all of the trappings of the Olympics – the torch parade, the park, the building projects, the precision of the planning, which has taken hundreds of people to do, the faffing in the regions – is that this is all something of a huge waste of human endeavour. What could be achieved if all this money and good will could be put to use for something more worthwhile?

But then that is what I think about sport more generally, so perhaps I’m not the best placed person to judge. And it’s not as if I have any actual suggestions as to what that more productive thing might be, so perhaps I should just shut up and let the enthusiasts get on with it all.

It has been a long time since I last travelled on the SVR although Robin is a signalman and spends days at Hampton Loade.

We had a very enjoyable day and I grabbed a couple of signal boxes, I now need Kidderminster, Areley, and Bewdley South to complete the railway boxes.

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Evening practice at Worcester followed by pub.
The live webcam of Diglis lock shows the water receding so we might be able to travel on Wednesday (d.v.)!

Denise Hughes has been busy putting together the programme. Many of the towers have been confirmed and include:

Friday

• Tideswell, the Cathedral of the Peak
• Eyam, in the village of historical significance in relation to the ‘Plague’
• Bamford-in-the-Peak, included because of particular requests.

Saturday

• Baslow, in the lovely village by Chatsworth House
• Wetton, where two of our members ring
• Youlgrave, open ringing on the recently augmented twelve to finish the weekend.

It is hoped to have three Quarter Peal attempts running simultaneously in each of the three slots, 9.30, 11.30, and 2.30 during each day. There will be time for coffee and socializing between each. There will be twenty ropes available at any one time.

Society ringing

There will be a final tower each day with open ringing for all to allow us to ring together as a Society. This will be a chance for us all to get to know each other as well as the other opportunities over lunch.

Anyone interested in coming to the event please fill in the form below or contact Denise on mrs@mothy.org.uk or telephone 01260 253715. 

Originally published at OpUSCR.

So many questions.

What if it rains?

If the boat hits something, will the bells be knocked off the stay?

A friend on facebook has already asked whether the speed of the peal will be recorded in knots.

How much has it cost? how big are the bells? What will happen to them afterwards?

Firstly, people from some fairly major cathedrals have been highlighting when they have spare days for visiting choirs – and there has even been some suggestion of setting up a Facebook Scratch Choir. Which would be hugely fun, even if only to get some po-faced precentor to thank the Facebook Singers at the end of evensong.

Secondly, there was this rather good article from an Australian atheist called Apostates for Evensong that ticks rather a lot of boxes for things I have been pondering lately.

I’m fairly ambivalent about things Godly these days, but I maintain pretty strong links with the church through bellringing. Somehow I’m more into that than now than I have been for years and even my Sunday morning attendance – for ringing if not for services – is now hugely more than it has been for years.

How do you square a fairly strong agnostic position on the whole God front and still turn up week after week to ring the bells? I think bellringing and choral singing, especially evensong, are huge parts of the English cultural heritage. It may be that the church has the monopoly on all the equipment and costumes, but it’s culturally important that evensong and bellringing continue, whether or not it’s to do it just because it’s beautiful or to the glory of God. If God is there and listening, then it’s an expression of human worship. But there’s a purely humanist dimension as well. Hearing the bells and the choirs as an expression of human skill and talent, with no spiritual dimension, is just as uplifting.

I spend a week every year singing choral evensong with a touring choir, and every year think to myself I should a) sing routinely and not just in August and b) I should make a greater effort to go and hear other choirs singing evensong. Heck, on at least two nights a month I ring for evensong in St Peters but never stay for the service. St Peters and St Marys in Nottingham both have strong choirs and it’s not that far from Southwell Minster, which has a choral foundation. And yet in almost every year since I started singing over the summer, thirteen years this year, I don’t think I’ve been to evensong for the rest of the year more than once or twice. (I do remember one particular year taking P to evensong at St Mary’s, only to get lumbered with a Surprise Eucharist, and overly keen meeters and greeters on the door who wouldn’t let us leave afterwards…)

The 2011 Salvation Army Central Oklahoma Red Kettle Campaign kicked off Nov. 25, and hundreds of locations in Central Oklahoma will host Salvation Army Bell Ringers this Christmas season.

However, collections for the Red Kettle are $7,500 lower this year than they were this same time last year.

 The Salvation Army uses the donations to the Red Kettles for services to the Central Oklahoma area, capped off by its Christmas assistance program. The kick-off event, held Nov. 25 at Norman I-35 Walmart, featured Salvation Army officers and bellringers as well as Oklahoma’s largest Red Kettle, the Oklahoma City Thunder Mascot Rumble the Bison and the Salvation Army ensemble.

The Salvation Army Central Oklahoma Area Command includes Canadian, Cleveland and Oklahoma Counties.

“Our goal this year is to raise $599,768 total for all three counties,” said Area Commander Major Dan Proctor. “Last year, we were so blessed that the community beat the 2010 goal of $433,000, and we hope once again, citizens will donate their pocket change to help make a real difference to those suffering.”

 The Army has increased its services due to higher demand and needs to bring in more than last year to meet the goal. By county, this year’s goals are $28,727  for Canadian County, $106,261  for Cleveland County and $464,780 for Oklahoma County. 

 Throughout the past several years, The Salvation Army Central Oklahoma continues to see an increase in services. The Salvation Army depends upon bellringing and other fundraising efforts throughout the Christmas season for 20 percent of its fiscal year budget.

 “What we really need is for more service clubs, volunteer organizations, college students, community leaders, church Sunday School classes, families or individuals to commit to covering a location for a day or two, or half-days for smaller groups. Many clubs or groups have helped in the past and may even consider raising their own bar to help even more, perhaps covering a longer day or a second day. This would be so very helpful,” said Major Proctor.

 The Salvation Army will once again provide toys and clothes to 2,000 families in Central Oklahomaas well. Gifts will also be given to nursing home residents.

The Salvation Army and its officers are deeply committed to carrying out its ministry not only during the holiday season, but year round, said Major Proctor.

“Although our visibility is more heightened during the holidays, it is important that the community knows that our programs are ongoing,” said Major Proctor.  “We all need to come together to revitalize and strengthen the core of our local community by offering support any way we can.“ 

To volunteer to help with the bell ringing or for more information about Christmas programs, call  Lois Green at 405-246-1100. Paid bell ringing positions are also available, although volunteers are preferred.

The 2011 Salvation Army Central Oklahoma Christmas season kicks off this month not only with the Annual Red Kettle Campaign and Angel Tree program, but with a familiar “face” as well.

 Rumble the Bison, mascot for The Oklahoma City Thunder NBA team, is the honorary chair of The Salvation Army Central Oklahoma’s annual Christmas campaign. Fans can expect to see the bison ringing bells, hanging Angels on the Angel Tree and encouraging others to give.

 “Rumble is a beloved personality in Central Oklahomaand throughout the state. In addition, Rumble is famous for giving his time and talents to help better our community, so we invited him to be the face of the Christmas campaign this year,” said Area Commander Major Dan Proctor. “The honorary chair is chosen for his or her commitment to the community… I think it’s safe to say this is the first time a bison has been chosen.”

 As the honorary chair, Rumble will kick off  The Salvation Army’s Red Kettle campaign at 10 a.m. Nov. 25 at the Norman Walmart on Interstate Dr., and will unveil this year’s Angel Tree at 10:30 a.m. Nov. 18 at Quail Springs Mall. In addition, he will be in all of The Salvation Army Central Oklahoma’s promotions for Christmas.

 “The Thunder is proud to continue its partnership with the Salvation Army. Together we will be able to touch the lives of thousands of Oklahomans during the holiday season. This year we are especially thrilled for Rumble to chair the prominent Red Kettle campaign,” said Thunder Director of Community Relations Christine Berney.

 Fans can keep track of Rumble throughout the campaign on his Facebook (rumblethebison) and twitter (@rumblethebison) page, Berney added.  

 Since his debut in 2009, Rumble the Bison has completed over 1,200 community appearances throughout the state of Oklahoma, averaging more than 400 a season. In addition to birthday parties, city parades and school visits, Rumble can be spotted supporting non-profit agencies across the state. He annually participates in Central Oklahoma’s Race for the Cure, the Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon as Kids Chair, the Salvation Army’s Angel Tree launch and the United Way Campaign for Central Oklahoma.

 The Salvation Army uses Red Kettle donations for services to the Central Oklahoma area, capped off by its Christmas assistance program. Last year, Central Oklahomashoppers donated more than $430,000 to the Red Kettles, the most ever raised in the area.

 Throughout the past years, The Salvation Army Central Oklahoma continues in its mission of “Doing the Most Good” and has seen an increase in services. The Salvation Army depends upon Kettle donations and other fundraising efforts throughout the Christmas season to help feed, clothe and shelter people all year long. .

 The Salvation Army will once again provide toys and clothes to 2,000 families in Central Oklahoma through the Angel Tree program with Angel Trees located at both Penn Square and Quail Springs malls. Gifts are also given to nursing home residents.

 The Salvation Army and its officers are deeply committed to carrying out its ministry not only during the holiday season, but year round, said Major Proctor.

 “Although our visibility is more heightened during the holidays, it is important that the community knows that our programs are ongoing,” said Major Proctor.  “We all need to come together to revitalize and strengthen the core of our local community by ‘Doing the Most Good’ and offering support any way we can. Rumble also brings the community together, so he is a perfect fit for our Christmas outreach.”

 To volunteer to ring bells or for more information about Christmas programs and events planned by The Salvation Army, call Heide Brandes or Lois Green at 405-246-1100. Paid bell ringing positions are also available, although volunteers are preferred.

The map (based on maps from http://www.whereis.com/) shows the tiny part of the state we reached.

After a 5 hour flight west from Sydney to Perth we immediately drove east 4+ hours to Hyden.

The attraction of this small country town is Wave Rock, which we discovered is only one small part of Hyden Rock. The thumbnail gives an idea of the scale of the rock face. Much of the colour is from lichens on the granite, and the strange structure you may be able to see on the top is a wall built decades ago to redirect water runoff into a dam.

We had a full day to explore, climbing up by the dam, around the base to Hippo’s Yawn, a walk through the surrounding country (complete with the often-cited “carpet of wildflowers”, birds, lizards and many, many flies) and a short drive to Mulka’s Cave to view the Rock Art.

Next day we drove south, past the amazing colours and textures of the salt lakes around Lake Grace. This crusty desolate-looking landscape was only metres from wheatfields on just slightly higher land.
In the township of Lake Grace we visited the Australian Inland Mission Hospital Museum, then on through the Stirling Range to the port of Albany where we arrived in time for a dusk walk around the old parts of the town.
The highlight of the next day was the Valley of the Giants near Walpole. The link has a video which gives an idea of the 40 metre high pathway among the trees – you can see its shadow on the ground below in my photo.
The second part of the walk took us down and around the trees, where mum and I posed for the obligatory photo.
Driving on, we had our picnic lunch at a lookout over the Great Australian Bight towards the Southern Ocean, then reached Bunbury in time for dinner watching sunset over the Indian Ocean.
In the morning we drove on to Perth in time for midday ringing at the Bell Tower. No photos, so follow the link or even better, go visit when you’re in Perth. My mother, who has been ringing since 1940-something, was really excited to be able to watch the bells swinging – normally we just see ropes vanishing through holes in a ceiling, but here you can go up to the level of the bells and see it all happen (with very effective soundproof glass so you can still have a conversation). It was really fun to chat with visitors and explain some of the finer points of our usually invisible but highly audible craft. The rest of the day was a stroll through Perth followed by collapsing in our apartment.
Morning coffee with mum’s god-daughter was followed by a sobering visit to the Katta Djinoong gallery at the Western Australian Museum, learning about the history and culture of Aboriginal peoples of Western Australia. Harsh and all too common stories. The gallery name means “see and understand us” and perhaps I was able to, at least a little.
The afternoon, in total contrast, we spent at the Princely Treasures exhibition at the Art Gallery. The beautiful, opulent pieces from the Victoria and Albert Museum were magnificent, but rather cold and impersonal after the morning’s experience. It was all about flaunting power and prestige – which is not to say I didn’t admire the beauty and craftsmanship displayed, in particular a bed cover and a table top spinning wheel.
The next day we spent in Fremantle where I indulged my fascination with rust, but our primary focus was the Shipwreck Galleries, part of the Western Australian Museum, and in particular the Batavia (wrecked in 1629). The large exhibit was timbers from the ship that have been reconstructed on a steel frame, but for me the most exciting were actual textile fragments – lace (and lace bobbins), twill, and knit. The lace was found in concretion and there was sufficient for Rosemary Shepherd to produce a pattern.
Our final day was spent in Kings Park and Botanic Garden. Great views over Perth and an amazing variety of plants.

One disappointment was the very nice shop, Aspects of Kings Park. I made a point of going in to see Shirley Treasure‘s weaving. Her work didn’t disappoint and there were other talented textile artists represented – but I felt the manner of “display” did them a grave disservice. Work was stored in large drawers, in a general jumble. Bits were trailing out higgledy-piggledy, very difficult to see and appreciate – and I was making a conscious effort! Another issue for me came up when browsing the jewellery, where many of the artists came from interstate. I would have preferred that the gallery did more editing of their artists and concentrate on those of Western Australia and presenting them really well, rather than cramming in so much.

We had a wonderful holiday. We ticked off everything on our “must do” list and were left wanting more time to explore everywhere we went. On the flight home I re-read all my OCA course notes from the beginning – and was left feeling I’ve strayed from the path in the latest exercises. I did do a little sketching and stitching while away, plus take heaps of photos of texture – rust, rocks, bark, flowers… But that’s a topic for another day.

Blue skies and sun accompanied our journey and the breeze on the river was a welcome relief to the heat of the day. We passed the confluence of the Severn and Teme and spotted Kempsey and Severn Stoke on the way.

It’s not very often that you get to see Carrington Bridge from below and most surprising to see the traffic actually moving on it! We came up through Diglis Lock (the river one) and the view through the open gates was rather good with the cathedral in the background and the landing stage for Diglis Canal locks on the right.

We came up into Diglis Basin with an audience and passed through Sidbury and Blockhouse Locks to moor away from the city noise. Most of us walked back to Sidbury for an indian meal at Sidbury Spice (bring your own booze) then back to the boat for the last night:-(
It’s now 11pm the boat is quiet and I can hear all the city churches chiming the hour: the cathedral, St Nicholas, St Martin’s and the Glover’s Needle. In the words of a famous diarist “and so to bed”

Once on the river it was full steam ahead upstream with a nice sunny day but chilly when the sun went in. We did have a quick stop at Hawbridge for a pint at the Hawbridge Inn, very nice 6X. Refreshments over we batted on upstream for Tewkesbury. There is a lovely view of the abbey just before you get to Upper Lode Lock and with sailing boats too!
We had to hang around below the lock waiting for it to empty and about 10 rowing boats emerged before we could go in, some looked small enough to be picked up and carried around the lock. It was all very “wind in the willows” or possibly “three men in a boat”.
Above the lock we turned right onto the Avon and tried to find somewhere to moor below Avon Lock. Nicholson’s suggests mooring by the mill but there was precious little evidence of any mooring there, intact there appeared to be a boom across the river to prevent mooring there. We stopped at the pontoon for the lock and sought out the lock keeper for advice. Eventually we paid £5 to moor the boats overnight at the pontoon provided we were away by 9am.

Claire then took some of us on a quick tour of the back passages of Tewkesbury which was more interesting than it sounds. She had planned to give us the tour of the secret parts of the abbey but due to the mooring issues time was against us so we had a quick once round the abbey and then off to fish and chips and treacle tart on the boat. Unless we can come up with a plan for tomorrow morning it looks like ringing at the abbey will not happen as we have to get off the pontoon by 9am. Being a mere 20 minutes from home it’s not a problem for us but I was looking forward to ringing there:-/. It’s now 23:09 and everyone else is asleep so I guess that’s it for the day.

We had a nice walk along and looked at all the hulks, each of which had a small plaque showing details of the boat and who donated money for the plaque and why.

While we were there the tide turned and we witnessed the full force of the water rushing in from the mouth of the river; quite a sight.
Back to the boats and off we set towards our first tower of the day, Frampton on Severn, an interesting ring in need of a rehang. The local says it will happen “after the wedding season”.
Lunch was taken before moving on to our second tower of the day, Whitminster, a very nice 15cwt 6, on route we passed Saul Junction again and had another look at the dead branch of the Stroudwater Canal.

Our third and final tower of the day was Moreton Valence and we moored at Parkend Bridge to walk there; but the delay in getting there, not I have to say due to the boat but rather the lack of a viable footpath, meant we didn’t ring at all! Robin had gone via the road to post a card and got there to meet the local but we abandoned all hope of ringing after half an hour walking round fields looking for the way through. Those of us who had rung there thought this was a lucky escape;-)
Off we went again for the last leg of the day to Gloucester, a nice run in intermittent sunshine and slight spattering of rain. We moored outside Sainsbury’s and retired to the local Pizza Hut, this was a first for Jane who had never been to one before but I think she found it not altogether unpleasant. It was obviously “end of term” as it was mobbed with adolescent girls in their best garb and sporting some outlandish hair dos. Needless to say we brought some pizza back to the boat “for lunch tomorrow”. The delights of PH done Sainsbury’s beckoned and a “reprovisioning” opportunity was taken.
As we were on 4 hour moorings we had to turn the boat and move back down the canal a little way to find somewhere to stop for the night. This had the advantage of pointing us in the right direction for tomorrow (we are ringing at Hempstead) and getting us away from High Orchard Bridge and the noise of traffic. Romans Quay is a building site at the moment with new housing going up but, as tomorrow is Saturday, there is unlikely to be any construction happening.

At Saul Junction I half expected to see a train cross in front of us, the gates were vey reminiscent of old fashioned level crossings. On the right we saw the remains of the Stroudwater Canal, just a couple of rotting lock gates and some standing water.

The afternoon turned out to be really pleasant with high cloud and sunshine,

the cruise down to Sharpness was reminiscent of the lower Weaver. We stopped at the end for water and a walk

before moving back up a little way to moor for the night near Pirton by the remains of the Severn railway bridge.

Claire was navigating by the riverside pubs she recognised!
We are moored in Gloucester docks for the night, nice location and a pleasant stop. Dinner was pork casserole and fresh pineapple and cream for dessert.

and Dunhampstead Tunnel and turned left (a very tight left turn when you are 68′ long!) onto to the Droitwich Canals. At the first lock we were met by “an official” who was working the lock to prevent his workmates getting flooded out as they were bricklaying around the mouth of the second lock.
He explained that they discovered that the lock was a couple of inches too narrow in one part so they were widening the throat but had been held up due to birds nesting in the brickwork. He also gave the rather bad news that the river lock at Worcester was out of action and may have to change out plans for the week:-((. A subsequent phone call to the BWB revealed that Worcester lock is unlikely to be fixed before the weekend so plan changes are definitely required. Watch this space…
After the nicely restored staircase locks

we went under the M5 (with very little headroom)

and travelled through the pretty Vines Park to moored in the new Netherwich Basin (at the time of writing the water point is not working) in Droitwich for lunch, followed by a shopping trip.
After lunch we continued down the canal and rang at the pleasant 11cwt 6 at Salwarpe. The remainder of the day was taken up with the rest of the Droitwich Barge Canal which,

on the whole, is a most enjoyable cruise and thoroughly recommended to anyone with a weekend to spare. Some of the lock gates are a bit heavy and may require a bit of brute force to close. We paused for dinner just above King’s Hawford lock (chicken stir fry and lemon sponge pudding with copious amounts of wine).
The river lock was passed and we then travelled up river to Holt where we moored for the night. The pub moorings were considerably better than the Wharf Inn which should be avoided at all costs! No beer, no ice, no wine and everything served in half pint glasses – nice:-/

“An alteration in the management of this Association has been decided upon during the past year, whereby we trust more help may be given in the art of change-ringing, and our membership considerably increased. A poll of the members was taken, when it was found that a large majority, 233 to 36, were in favour of three branches being formed, and nine quarterly branch meetings being held, instead of the three as formerly.

At a special meeting held at Hartlebury on October 1, arrangements were made to carry this into effect at the New Year; the boundaries were defined, rules drawn up, and branch masters and secretaries appointed.”

How many meetings these days attract nearly 300 members?

Thus it was that the three branches (Northern, Southern & Western) of the Worcestershire & Districts Change Ringing Association came into existence on 1st January 1911. This was not without repercussions, on 25th February 1911, the Dudley & District Guild of Change-Ringers was formed and claimed all towers within a 10 mile radius of St Thomas’s Church, Dudley. Ironically most towers and members retained their dual membership, a situation that continued until 1970 when the Dudley & District was merged back into the Northern Branch.

The membership and towers in the branches were considerably different 100 years ago, some we know today were not mentioned at all while other have since going out of action or disappeared altogether. The “Performing Members” in the branches were dispersed across the following towers:

Northern Branch
Bromsgrove, Brierley Hill, Chaddesley Corbett, Clent, Cradley, Dudley, Hagley, Halesowen, Hartlebury, Kidderminster, King’s Norton, Lye, Netherton, Northfield, Old Hill, Oldswinford, Stourbridge, Selly Oak, Sedgley (now Lichfield & Walsall), Smethwick, Tipton (featured in Channel 4’s Grand Designs in 2007), Wollaston and Wolverley.

Southern Branch
Badsey, Bretforton, Cropthorne, Great Comberton, Evesham, Hampton and Pershore.

Western Branch
Areley Kings, Dodderhill, Hallow, Hanbury, Leigh, Malvern Link, Madresfield, Martley, Ombersley, Powick, Salwarpe, Stoke Prior (now in the Northern Branch), Suckley, Upton-upon-Severn, Worcester Cathedral, Worcester St John and Worcester St Nicholas.

A century later and how are we doing? Well, the branches’ towers have increased, membership has certainly increased, we have a few losses and a few gains in bells and towers, peals are at a low ebb; but we are celebrating around the branches!

Western Branch
The branch’s “big project” was to ring at least one Quarter Peal in each of the ringable towers between March and May 2011 – this was achieved. There have been fifty seven performances (25 quarter peals and 2 peals) including one handbell quarter. This covered all the currently ringable towers (43) in the branch and involved 119 ringers, 24 methods and 23 conductors. A number of “firsts” were scored during the celebrations, in particular congratulations go to the following individuals on ringing their first Quarter Peal: James Black, Melanie Newport and Brian Taylor. Also of note were the 1911 Doubles and Minor at Shrawley and the 2011 Doubles and Minor at Clifton upon Teme, both of which were rung on the same day by members of the Martley Guild.

Another notable first was ringing at Croome D’Abitot after 11 years of silence. The project to restore Croome started in 2010 with a branch open day to raise funds for the BRF; this was a very successful event and they are planning another one (hopefully to include Croome) on 10th September 2011 – further details will be published in due course. The Branch Secretary, Paul Smith, was the main driving force behind the project with the able assistance of his father (Martin Smith) and uncle (Nigel Davis). This restoration and the imminent return of Worcester St John in Bedwardine means that all towers with 5 or more bells (with the exception of Severn Stoke) in the branch are ringable again.

Northern Branch
On Friday 13th May 2011 65 ringers, friends and family sat down to a dinner, held at Kidderminster in the Severn Valley Railway’s “Valley Suite”. The Valley Suite was in the final addition to the station building, during the day it is known as the station buffet, but it was transformed into the perfect setting for the evening. It is an excellent venue for such an event, seating up to about seventy in comfort.

The diners that evening, including guests the Very Revd David Walker, Bishop of Dudley, his wife Sue; and our Association Master, Alison Regan, were treated to an excellent meal and some amateur entertainment provided by members of the branch.

Paul Marshall sang a song “The Bricks” accompanied by Rosie Thorns on the Guitar. This went down very well, it is a very funny story, familiar to most, and the mistakes helped too.

Stephen Bedford’s “Polemic Poem”, commissioned for the evening, caused much hilarity. Suffice to say that quite a few ringers in the Association area, and Bishop David, are contemplating revenge; however, Paul Marshall managed to pip them all to the post with a poetic counter attack in which Mr Bedford was described as a “Barrage Balloon with Limp” and an “Aged Turk”. Unfortunately Mr Bedford revels in this sort of abuse so the insults had little effect.

The highlight of the evening surely must have been the rendition of Camille Saint Saens’ “The Swan” by a group of ringers from Hartlebury, John Webb and Iris and Tony Checketts, accompanied by Chris Webb on the piano. Tony fastidiously ensured that everyone’s bells were in the right order, only to find that his were not. The performance was atrocious, so much so that it was hilarious, with people rolling about in the aisles. So a re-match was called for, with Tony’s bells in their correct positions. A much improved performance followed, with only a few prompts from the pianist, ending with a rapturous round of applause from the, albeit captive, audience.

An excellent evening was had by all, with many people saying that they’d like another soon, at least in less than 100 years.

On the ringing front Paul Marshall has been busy composing Stedman touches of 1911 (Triples and Cinques), the triples was rung at Old Hill where the first branch meeting was held in 1911 but the Cinques is awaiting a re-match… The branch has also rung a peal at Netherton repeating a 1911 performance and a quarter at Stourbridge. They will be ringing more quarters and perhaps some peals during the year in celebration. By the time of publication they should also have had a BBQ at Cookley.

Southern Branch
The branch started celebrating early by ringing of a 1911 of Doubles at Bredon’s Norton in November 2010, composed by Andrew Evans. It is their goal to mark this special year by remembering the past, enjoying the present and planning for the future. Two meeting venues were chosen looking to the past: a meeting in February at Bretforton, where the first branch meeting took place in 1911; and the Branch AGM in October at Fladbury, the site of the first Branch AGM. Members will be treated to a historical exhibition covering the accomplishments and events of the past 100 years.

Another undertaking was hosting the Association AGM on Easter Monday at Overbury, this was very successful.

Following ringing at Great Hampton the branch took to the water for its June meeting, held on “Handsam Too”, on the Avon at Evesham (this is certainly the first time I’ve been to a branch meeting on the water!).

On the social front there is a planned walk and ring on Bredon Hill in July; in August there is a barbecue – swim party, and finally in September, an outing by coach to London.

The branch secretary writes, “It is hoped that as many members as possible will ring something to celebrate this special event.  Whether it is a 120 of Plain Bob or a peal, it doesn’t matter.  What counts is that everyone takes part.  We are keeping a record of all ringing reported, and this will become a permanent part of the Southern Branch records”. As of writing they have rung 12 quarters in 6 towers.

To finish the year of celebrations a 2011 date touch is planned.

In conclusion I would like to express my thanks to all the branch secretaries and other officers for providing updates on their branches’ plans and activities. It has certainly been a lively year so far and, I hope, prove to be a catalyst for renewed interest in branch activities.

Mark Wilson
General Secretary W&DCRA

I am currently trying to commit to memory the blue line for London Surprise Major.This is one of the standard eight surprise methods, a cornerstone of bellringing.

Back in February inspiration struck – could I represent complex bellringing methods using supplementary warp floats?

I did some sampling – the idea held some promise if only I could get the right sett. Advice from Liz and the weaving group was very welcome.

In March I was dyeing yarn, then redyeing!

Next step was warping using my new AVL warping wheel. It went very smoothly, onto the sectional beam for the ground warp and the plain beam for the supplementary. Tension held nice and even throughout weaving

However the weaving didn’t go well. The first few centimetres looked streaky, obscuring the patterning.

Weeks passed, some pleasant (Forum in Orange), some less so (virus in tummy). Finally I bit the bullet, and on Monday unwove all that had been done and resleyed.

Weaving restarted, all looked well – until I realised I had mucked up the ringing pattern.

Deep breaths.

Unwove.

Wove.

Yes!

There is still some streakiness, but the patterning is clear and readable  (I tested it on the other ringers this morning). The hand and drape of the cloth is good and with finished measurements 184 by 19.5 cm plus fringe it’s a great weight and size to wrap around the neck in Sydney’s autumn.

I was able to include 4 leads of Bristol Maximus – a ringing pattern with 12 bells. The brown ground cloth squares show the path of the treble (highest note) – it follows a path ringing first, then 2nd, then first, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th etc, forming a jagged but regular line going from 1st to 12th and back 4 times. The blue supplementary warp float blocks show the path of one other bell – it could be any of the other 11 bells since they all follow the same Bristol Maximus pattern, just starting at different points (it’s a bit like 4 people singing “row row row your boat” in rounds). If you’re a ringer and the photo doesn’t quite look right, the pattern is mirrored and doesn’t start exactly at a lead end.

After all the palaver it was pleasant to weave. I did some experiments at the end of the warp to see if I could further reduce the streakiness and did manage to get improvements, but only with a lot of fuss lifting and manually clearing sheds that I didn’t actually weave in order to keep the ground and supplementary warps in proper alignment. Given I like the final scarf, the cost/benefit of the extra fussing isn’t worth it. Maybe playing around with reed size and denting would be useful if I revisit this.

Focus. Yes. (now everything has an ess, and this was not deliberate).

Ahem. (OK. better.)

I’ve spent some time the last few days seeing if my bus inspiration actually holds water – will the design be readable and will the cloth drape for a scarf?

Here’s version 1 on the loom. Base warp is 20/2 silk. Supplementary warp a silk merino 2 ply, 650m/100g (the supplier closed her small dyeing business a while back). Sett 40 ends per inch (20 of each warp type), except in the selvedge area and breaks between pattern areas. The threading is pretty much the original idea seen at the bottom here, but with variations on the number of supplementary threads per block. From left to right I tried 3, 4, 5 and 1 threads. Weft was 20/2 silk. I didn’t pay much attention to picks per inch – just standard comfortable not light or heavy. As I was weaving I tried a few different numbers of repeats/length of warp floats.

Version 2 had warp unchanged, but 60/2 silk for weft.

Here are versions 3 (at bottom) and 4 on the loom. I resleyed to 30 ends per inch – 15 background warp plus 15 supplementary. I also added some undyed merino-silk to the selvedge/pattern break areas, so they would feel more consistent with the rest of the cloth and cope better with the more open sett. I made a major hash of this, threading the new warp ends in with the same heddles as the base cloth. Plus the back of the loom became a rats nest as my supplementary warp got short (I was using thrums from Geoff’s scarf). Not a pretty sight (the camera seems to agree – the colour went very odd).

I kept to the 20/2 silk for weft, but tried both my default beat (which worked out around 17 picks per inch) and a deliberately light beat towards the end (around 11 picks per inch on the loom).

The washed and pressed samples together – left to right samples, 1, 2, then 4 above 3.

All have good definition of the design, with the brown float/white background/mixed plain weave areas clear, even in the unpleasantly sleazy sample 4.

The big issue was getting a nice scarf drape. I really like the final sample 1 cloth, but it’s too firm for the purpose. I’d like to return to it another time, maybe as part of a light jacket (the patterning could be a bit strong all over).

Sample 2 draped a little better, but not enough plus I think the finer silk brings a slight harshness.

Jumping to sample 4, this actually feels nice but is crazy-sleazy.

So, we have a winner. Cue close up of sample 3. Overlook the fact that end-of -warp issues have introduced a few oddities. The drape and hand are nice, and (I hope!) suitable if not perfect for a scarf. The floats cover the background quite well. There is some deflection of the warp and weft around the background areas. I rather like the irregularities – not sure how much will be in the final, given a better tensioned warp. In any case the pattern is quite distinct (it’s not any actual bellringing method, just playing around).

Colours are chosen, so the next step is calculations of lengths and weights for dyeing.

* a pattern based on bellringing

* 12 “bells” – so 12 blocks plus edge treatment

* able to show the path of one “working” bell, plus if possible the “hunt” bell. The picture on the right gives the idea (this pattern is part of “Bristol Surprise Maximus”, and the diagram was created using http://www.boojum.org.uk). The red “hunt” bell line follows a very regular pattern, jagging from left to right and back. The blue “working” bell is irregular.

* a nicely draping scarf, based on 20/2 silk.

* as few shafts as possible – limited to 24, since that’s what I have.

* preferably a one shuttle weave.

I’ve woven “bellringing” in a number of structures before. Huck gave me lace for the working bell, plain weave for the hunt bell and huck texture for the rest, but would need 26 shafts for 12 bells. Summer and winter in cottolin with two pattern wefts worked well with towels, but I wasn’t keen on the 3 shuttles and wondering about drape-ability. I’ve also woven with a variant of overshot (blogged at the end of this post) – maybe, but I’m not feeling it.

I’ve been playing in fibreworks PCW and reading The Best of Weaver’s: Summer & Winter Plus and a whole lot of other reference, playing with multishaft overshot, summer and winter, turned drafts… Ringing methods have a very predictable pattern in the sense of moving from block to block, which I thought could give me some flexibility, maybe stretch or break a few normal structural rules…

This explanation is so long!! And the idea was so fast and I think may work. If I have a base weave (say blue 20/2 silk plain weave and supplementary warps (say a nice plump merino/silk in red), then I can have 3 colours in an area.

This is a quick trial in fibreworks – 6 bells so I can sample on my 8 shaft loom. This is “Cambridge Minor” (I now realise a confusing change of colours to blue for hunt bell and red for working bell).

* floated supplementary warps on top (red)

* floated supplementary wefts on bottom (so background blue on top)

* supplementary warp woven in – call it purple.

I’d need 2 shafts for the plain weave plus 1 for each bell position. In the trial I mirrored the method across the warp, just for a better visual balance.

Next step is sampling yarns and sett to get enough differentiation of colour and a nice drape. I’ll have to consider different takeup of the warps – both the supplementary and the base at the edges. There are also float length and block width decisions………