St Stephen's Hampstead

[laithbells at a...]

My apologies for late response but as a small footnote to the history of these bells, in early 1986 when I was seeking a ring of bells to make a 12 for the University of Western Australia Australian Bicentennial bell tower project (now the ring of 16 + 2 known as the Swan Bells) in Perth, Western Australia, I was advised of the availability of this Taylors 10. I met with a prebend of St Paul's Cathedral, who was living in the St Stephen's rectory in Hampstead and who offered the ring to me at scrap metal value.

However on obtaining several opinions including those of the late Jim Prior and Taylors, I was advised that the front four bells were of such inferior quality and/or tuning and that it was virtually impossible to imagine them being augmented to a worthwhile 12, and that if I was to just retune the back six and recast the front 4 + 2 new, that this cost would not be warranted, and better alternatives should become available in the next year or so. I later pursued a redundant ring of 8 bells in Bristol, the 12 from St Martin in the Bull Ring Birmingham, and finally ended up with the St Martin-in-the-Fields Rudhall 12 (c1725-1780s).

If I had been given several positive confirming reports on the Hampstead bells they would now be ringing in Perth and St Martin-in-the-Fields bells would most certainly have been broken up.

Laith Reynolds