Скачать или смотреть The Great Bell of Bow

St Mary-le-Bow in London is world famous for being the definition of what a true Cockney is - anyone born within earshot of the sound of the Bow Bells is a "true Cockney". The church of St Mary-le-Bow is a fantastic Baroque structure, designed by Sir Christopher Wren and built between 1671 and 1673 following the destruction of the original building in the 1666 Great Fire of London. The church was again severely damaged in 1941 thanks to Luftwaffe air raids.

The tall tower contains a ring of twelve sublime bells cast in 1956 by Mears and Stainbank, with a tenor weighing 41-3-21cwt in C. Punchy, crisp and very audible in the ringing chamber, these bells are truly amazing. They go quite well but are a tad unpredictable due to tower movement. These bells replace a 54-0-12cwt ring of twelve in B that was restored by Gillett and Johnston in 1933 after years of silence. Eight of those bells were recast by Gillett and Johnston thanks to a donation from H. Gordon Selfridge, owner of the iconic Selfridge's Store. However, these bells were destroyed in a Luftwaffe air raid on the 11th of May 1941 when the church was destroyed by incendiary bombs. Twelve new bells were cast in 1956 by Mears and Stainbank and hung in 1961 by Ernie Rowe and Bill Theobald (information courtesy of Steven Rowe) in a frame made of Yang wood. His Royal Highness, the Duke of Edinburgh chimed the tenor during the dedication service and allegedly later said in a pub that the tenor "did not feel like two f*****g tons!". A rather amusing story.