Saturday at midday St John`s Church, Redhill began tolling a single tenor bell 99 times as a mark of respect to HRH Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh. Susy Radio`s Neil Munday was invited to join the Bell Tower Captain Anne Rueff and her assistant Tom to climb the stairs to the loft and the ladder to the Belfry and witness the bells first hand.

 
What a climb up a stone tight narrow spiral stair turning several times, remembering the social distancing and whilst wearing a facemask starting to gasp a little – maybe I’m just unfit!

The top of the stairs entering into a chamber, quite a pleasant room with ropes falling through turned bezels in the ceiling leading to every one of the eight bells. Bell sequences displayed on the wall and light entering through the small tower windows.

Anne explains how the bell needs to be muffled on one side of the clapper to give a two tone sound each way the bell turns one way soft, one way loud. Explains how the bell has to be set in position because of the odd number the bell mouth being swung to the upright position which is explained with the use of a small working model.

Tom arrives, scrambles into his overalls a little like a Le Mans driver waiting for the running start, he`s off up the ladder nimble footed 3 points of contact into the belfry with the muffler a leather pad. I’m allowed to ascend the ladder to the top but no further. I must not enter the belfry a dangerous place, Tom is up his experience showing as he goes over the steel beams like a gymnast on a bar, dropping himself into the “Pit” the space beneath the bell on the far side, out of my view to fit the muffler.

I descend the ladder followed by Tom who secures the hatch. Anne then sets the Bell in motion building momentum 5, 6, 7 swings and its set bell mouth up. We await midday!

Neil Munday

Media © Neil Munday