Tall but tight on the ground, St Laurence is thought to be one of England's oldest Saxon churches. It possibly dates to as early as around AD700, but may have been rebuilt at the end of the first … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Dale Abbey
An amazing semi-d church: tiny and attached to a farmhouse. It was clearly too small for purpose in the 17th/18th century, when box pews were added in any available space and galleries squeezed into … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Little Missenden
A charming church that straddles the ages in an attractive village that does much the same. The atmosphere inside the church is very special, with light falling across the rough walls and picking out … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Redland Chapel, Bristol
Built as a private chapel, Redland is a fine Georgian church: neat and well-ordered. Wood panelling covers all the walls, interspersed with these cherub corbels. … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: St Mary Redcliffe, Bristol
A phenomenal church in the quality of its execution and the dramatic visual impact it offers when confronted by the view looking down the nave towards the chancel and altar. The careful delineation of … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Brentor, Dartmoor
Unsurprisingly this is a church that is all about location. From round about, it is a pinpoint on the horizon, an extra peak on the ridge at the western edge of Dartmoor; from the church itself, … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Boxgrove, Sussex
What remains here is a substantial relic of a Benedictine Priory. Parts date from the 12th and 13th centuries, while the painting on the nave ceiling is later, dating to the 1520s. Depicting family … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Blythburgh, Suffolk
An exceptional church in every respect: far-off setting on heathland a couple of miles in from the sea, glorious array of Perpendicular windows and a wonderfully relaxed interior that's spacious and … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Avington
At their best, 18th-century churches achieved a kind of perfection, and this is true of St Mary's. With its red-brick simplicity and modest square tower, it is clearly less spectacular than its Gothic … [Read more...]
Betjeman’s Best British Churches: Axbridge
With plenty of clear glass, St John's has a light, spacious interior. The afternoon light fell softly on this 17th-century monument in the Lady Chapel. The paintwork that picks out the figures was a … [Read more...]