A few weeks ago I travelled north the town of Seaham where I was able to photograph a church that I had wanted to see for some time. For many years I`ve owned the original architects drawing dating from 1862 when it was substantially enlarged. It had been built to serve the mining community at Seaham and the churchyard contains memorials to the nearly 200 men lost in two underground explosions. I was delighted to see that it is still in use and that the churchyard is well maintained.

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I also visited Beamish Museum where I especially wanted to visit St Helen`s Church, re-erected there from Eston in Yorkshire. Dating from the 17th and 18th centuries the interior is dominated by two Commandment Boards which I supplied to them 9 years ago. They fit in very well as you see from the photograph. Incidentally the box pews came from Somerset!

Welcome to my February round-up

I still have some places left for the 3 day tour to Wales in April. Please email me for further information This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Next week`s lavishly illustrated ZOOM lecture is on the fascinating story of the Church Building Commission, the Incorporated Church Building Society and the 1851 Religious Census. Join me will you? 

John Vigar Zoom lecture

In May I`m leading a tour of Essex Churches to raise funds for the Friends of Essex Churches. It`s a self drive tour just off the M11.

In March my Zoom lecture tells the story of the Chancel - its purpose, construction and the things we find in it. Expect some surprises! Book with this link

Chancel Zoom lecture

Also in March I return to Kent to speak to the Friends of Kent Churches on `Some interesting Church Fonts`.

As ever, the Calendar tab on my website will show you all my activities.

Until next time, take care and I hope to see you soon.

John

Now that the frenzy of New Year has passed I felt it a good time to update you on some of my future events. The following are all public events and in addition to my private bookings:

Zoom lectures coming up 

13th February   The 1851 Religious Census and Incorporated Church Building Society

16th March The Chancel of the English Parish Church The Chancel of the Parish Church

2nd September for the Society of Geneaologists, 

The following are in-person events

29th April in-person lecture for the Friends of Kent Churches at Lenham Village Hall, Interesting Church Fonts in Kent 

24th May guided tour of 4 North Essex Churches for the Friends of Kent Churches, own transport required.

23rd June in-person lecture at Hemblington Church, Norfolk in aid of the Friends of Hemblington Church.

South Wales Church Tour, April 24th to 27th.

There are still places left on this tour which starts and ends at Cardiff Central Station. Three nights, visiting approx 20 churches, the majority of which are not normally open. DBB accommodation and coach travel included. Full details are here S Wales Tour

I`m currently writing a new volume of Sussex Churches but am pleased to annouce the launch of Churches of Cambridgeshire as July. It is already available for pre-order from your normal bookseller.

I always love hearing from you so please do drop me a line via the contact box on www.johnevigar.com

John Vigar`s CHURCHES IN SOUTH WALES TOUR 2023

Monday April 24th to Thursday April 27^th 2023

Join us for a tour exploring a wide variety of churches. Staying at the Iconic Angel Hotel opposite Cardiff Castle Hotel on a DBB basis. The tour starts and ends at Cardiff Central Station at 1.30pm.

ROATH, ST MARGARET
Stunning Victorian church built by Lord Bute as his family mausoleum. Colourful interior. Glass by Burlison and Grylls and altar by Comper

ROATH, ST GERMAN
Bodley designed church of great renown. 1881. `Strong, lithe and thin`.

I`m delighted to publish my Winter 2022 series of Zoom lectures which are now available to book. As usual they are richly illustrated and  cover both English and Welsh churches.

21st November Commandment and Benefaction Boards

1st December Pulpits and Lecterns

4th January Love Everlasting? Hand-Holding Church Monuments

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  It doesn`t seem that long ago that we were anticipating the arrival of summer - and here it is.

I`m still taking bookings for my coach tour of Leicestershire Churches Tour which runs from the 10-13 October. It really will be a good selection of churches, many of which are difficult of access. Next Spring we will be visiting South Wales. More details on that one in a month or so.

I have just finished writing Churches of Cambridgeshire which will be out next Spring but my other three volumes in the set (Norfolk, Hampshire, Kent) are all currently available from your chosen outlet.

I am delighted to have been chosen to host a course on the inaugural Attleborough Lifelong Learning Summer Programme. I`ll be teaching a three session course on Norfolk Churches at Attleborough Town Hall on Friday mornings starting on June 17th. No previous experience necessary! Cost for the course is £24 to include refreshments. To book phone George Ridgway on 01953 455995 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Join John Vigar this October as he leads a tour of 20 historic churches on the Leicestershire/Northamptonshire border. These tours are always popular. It starts on Monday October 10th at Leicester Station at 2pm and ends at the same time and place on Thursday October 13th. We stay at the Best Western Ullesthorpe Court Hotel on a DBB basis. All coach travel is included, as are sandwich lunches on the two full days out. Churches to be visited include 

AYLESTONE, BURBAGE, BLABY,  HINKLEY, LUTTERWORTH, CADEBY,  CLAYBROOKE PARVA, WIGSTON PARVA, STOKE GOLDING, MISTERTON,  WELFORD, NORTH KILWORTH, YELVERTOFT,  HUSBANDS BOSWORTH, PEATLING MAGNA,  WISTOW, STANFORD ON AVON, FOSTON, BURTON OVERY

Most of these churches are being opened especially for us. As usual, all churches are subject to avaialability.

Cost of the tour is £695 per person with a deposit of £95 securing your place. Please contact John Vigar to book. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

I am repeating my popular Zoom course on Kent Churches this March, to tie in with the publication of my new book, Churches of Kent. The course will run for three Wednesday evenings commencing 9th March. Each session is from 7.30pm - 8.30pm and will cover history, architecture, furnishings, monuments and stained glass. The cost is £25 for the three sessions which may be booked here.  Kent Churches Course

The book can be purchased in all the usual outlets or direct from the publisher Amberley Books . It is a new look at 50 famous and not so well known churches and is profusely illustrated with 100 colour photographs.

The snowdrops are out and it almost feels as if Spring is around the corner. Many churches are now back to opening normally - I`ve visited 42 churches in January of which only 6 have been locked. However, some churches are either still hesitant to open, or have lost the momentum of opening from which they may never recover. It`s still a fluid situation.

I`m delighted to say that my new book on Churches of Kent has been published by Amberley Books. It is a completely new book covering 50 churches ranging from the famous to the little known and is illustrated by 100 colour photographs. The book is available from all the usual outlets and also direct from the publishers Amberley Books. It will be followed in a couple of months by Churches of Hampshire which is already available for discounted order from the same website. Churches of Cambridgeshire will be out in 2022 - I`m thoroughly enjoying working on it at the moment.

The much-postponed Tour of Somerset Churches is finally taking place in April. It is now full, with a waiting list, and we look forward to visiting 20 churches from our base in Ilminster. Booking for the Leicestershire Churches Tour which runs from October 10th-13th opens in April.

My Programme of Zoom lectures is now available. As well as some old favourites there are a couple of new titles!

Places are limited to just 30 people, so please book early! Bookings close the day before.

For Weddings, Baptisms and Funerals, January 10th

Murder, Sex and Mayhem in English Churches January 24th

Stained Glass in Norfolk Churches January 31st

If you haven`t yet purchased a copy of my recently published book perhaps this review from the Norfolk and Norwich Archaeological Society will encourage you.

Or this longer review from the East Anglia Daily Press https://www.edp24.co.uk/lifestyle/heritage/churches-of-norfolk-8232092

Copies are available from all the usual outlets or direct from the publishers.

Churches of Norfolk - Amberley Publishing (amberley-books.com)

I`m delighted to report that I am now taking bookings for my April 2022 weekend based in Somerset that was originally planned for April 2020. This three night coach tour will be based in Ilminster at a comfortable hotel that we have used before and will visit approximately twenty churches. The cost is £595 per person which includes Dinner, Bed and Breakfast and transport from 2pm at Crewkerne Station on the first day until 2pm at Crewkerne Station on the last day. The only extras will be lunches and donations to the churches. If you travel to Somerset by car you can be picked up and dropped back at the Hotel. Please note that single rooms are limited in number.

The situation regarding open churches is still mixed with the C of E giving individual churches discretion as to how to use their buildings. However, I am working on the premise that most of the churches I originally planned to visit will be available, although I may have to swap a few around nearer the time.

Here is my proposed Programme: 

Whitelackington, Shepton Beauchamp, South Petherton, Martock,Hinton St George, Crewkerne, Chillington,Cudworth, Curry Rivel, Muchelney, Kingsbury Episcopi, Long Sutton, Langport, Isle Abbots, North Curry, Hatch Beauchamp, Ashill, Chilthorne Domer, Montacute, Brympton.

To book please email or phone me. A deposit of £95 per person will be required, payable by cheque or PayPal.   This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.     07962 368062 

1. I`ve recently gone on two churchcrawls in East Anglia and I am pleased to say that churches here are opening up again. However I hear from other parts of the country that are still in severe lockdown.  A few weeks ago I was in York and able to visit two of the great monastic churches that get overlooked by the usual visitor. Selby Abbey is an almost complete monastic church, albeit with 20th century furnishings. It contains some interesting medieval monuments and is obviously much loved and cherished. The other was Bridlington Priory which stands about a mile inland from the modern seaside resort. Here just the nave survives - but what a nave! It also houses a fine 12th century memorial in Tournai marble.

2. My autumn Zoom lectures are now booking. Just click the links below to book your place.

7th September 7.30pm Wall Paintings in Medieval Churches

14th September 3.00pm Stained Glass in Norfolk Churches

Welcome to my July Blog.

I`ve been picking up on church visiting recently.  Things are becoming slightly easier although it`s not been plain sailing, with individual churches having made their own decision on whether to open or not. In Norfolk about 70% of the churches that were open pre-Covid are now open. Many never closed at all. Depressingly, it`s the churches in tourist locations that are most likely to be closed. It really doesn`t make sense. Covid is an airborne infection and the risk of picking it up from surfaces has been overblown. Whilst you can go into countless shops to make purchases I`ve heard that you can`t even buy a guidebook in Chichester Cathedral!

I recently visited 13 churches in Hampshire in order to take photographs for my forthcoming book on Hampshire Churches. Only one was locked.The others all had sanitiser by the door and were fully accessible.

I am delighted to announce the publication of my new book Norfolk Churches. It has kept me busy through lockdown and details 50 churches that I think are of particular note - not just those that you would expect to find. In fact I deliberately left out many well-known churches to give some little-known gems an airing! The book has 100 colour photographs.

It is available in all good local bookshops and direct from the publisher here: Churches of Norfolk - Amberley Publishing (amberley-books.com)

You may be interested to know that I have also written the Kent and Hampshire volumes for the same series, both of which will be published next year.

It's amazing how much medieval glass survives in Norfolk.

This 5 minute video introduces you to some musical angels.

Medieval stained glass angels from Norfolk

My Autumn Church Tour visiting approximately 20 churches, many of which are difficult of access, is now booking.

The tour runs from Monday October 11th at 2pm when the coach collects at Leicester Station until Thursday 14th at 2pm.

We will be based at the confortable Best Western Plus Ullesthorpe Court Hotel on a dinner bed and breakfast basis.

Welcome to the March edition of my occasional Blog. 

Leicestershire Church Coach Tour. 

It seems so long ago that I was able to lead a church tour - pictured is our tour to Lincolnshire in Autumn 2019, but I hope that I may be able to start again this year. Its too early to know whether the April Tour of Somerset Churches will go ahead as planned - a lot will depened on the roll out of the vaccine, but also on the attitude of individual churches. In my opinion some have been over-cautious with regard to access to the buildings, but I can appreciate them wanting to be 'better safe than sorry'. I`ll keep those booked on the tour up to date as soon as I have anything to report.

During lockdown last year I wrote two new books. Norfolk Churches will be published this Spring and Kent Churches will appear in the autumn. I am delighted to say that I am currently writing Hampshire Churches for publication next year. The Norfolk book is already available for pre-order here.

Norfolk Churches pre order