Ring in the jubilee

Queen Elizabeth II is marking her Diamond Jubilee—60 years on the throne of Great Britain. You can find all sorts of stories about the national celebrations—royal progress down the Thames in a barge, street parties, etc.

But something that is innately British, which will be an integral part of the celebrations this week, is the full peal. Churches throughout Britain (and maybe the Commonwealth) will be ringing full peals in honor of the Queen’s reign.

If you’ve watched any royal wedding, you’ll have caught a bit of change ringing—elaborate patterns of ringing multiple tuned bells in church towers. A full peal lasts for more than three hours.

I know a bit about this because I’ve read Nine Tailors, by Dorothy L. Sayers—a classic Lord Peter Wimsey mystery that revolves around change ringing. But also because a friend of mine has been a ringer since childhood. She’s tower captain (I think) for Holy Trinity Church in Cookham, and I’ve actually had the pleasure of watching her band ring in the tower.

(She also rings for Boyne Hill in Maidenhead, and I’ve watched her ring there, too.)

It’s a fascinating endeavor,and it’s kind of amazing to think that people in towers that are centuries old are ringing their bells for Her Majesty.

But beyond that, I was quite interested to find that the bell foundry that was commissioned to cast the eight bells that accompanied the Queen on her Thames progress yesterday (as well as a bell for the Olympics this summer) is the very same that refurbished Holy Trinity’s eight bells and cast two new ones a few years ago. My friend Marcia managed that whole process. I got her reports and felt I was involved in it kind of third-hand.

(Here's the ceremony with the bishop when the full ring of ten bells was installed.)

So I consider I have a connection (albeit tenuous) to the celebrations this week. Here's a cut from one of the peals, from Canterbury Cathedral:

(Marcia will choke when I mention this: but those fuzzy snake things that the ringers grip are actually called sallies. I'm the only one who calls them fuzzy snakes.)

And here's a clip of the Jubilee bells in action on the Thames:

I don't see the fuzzy snakes.