01.03.2019, 13:45 P.M.
DESCRIPTION
On behalf of the Friends of the City Churches, the distinguished tour guide, Tony Tucker, will provide a tour of several of Sir Christopher Wren’s (1632-1723) best churches. The churches are subject to access and timings on the day but are likely to include St Stephen Walbrook, St Mary Aldermary and St Mary le Bow, finishing in St Mary Abchurch where tea and cakes will be provided.
Wren’s churches have varied histories and features of architectural interest. St Stephen Walbrook is Wren’s masterpiece, with one of the finest classical interiors in the world and the first dome ever built in this country. In 1953, the Samaritans were founded in the church by Chad Varah, the Rector. St Mary Aldermary shows Wren working in the Gothic style, with dramatic results. The tower is of great elegance and the interior boasts a plaster fan-vaulted ceiling that is unique and quite spectacular. St Mary le Bow is the home of the famous Bow Bells and has the finest steeple in the City, if not the world. This is another Wren church with a great history and many stories to tell, but with a modern interior, rebuilt after the church was gutted by fire-bombs in the war. St Mary Abchurch is perhaps the most intact of the Wren churches, with some of the finest woodcarvings in the City, a painted dome and an interior almost unaltered since the 17th century.
Tony Tucker has written the authoritative guide book ‘Visitor’s Guide to City of London Churches’ (2006), with a forward by Simon Jenkins. Mr Tucker has worked in the City for over 40 years and was the former Chairman of City Guides. He is a Trustee of the Friends of the City Churches, an architectural heritage charity that is ‘dedicated to preserving the beautiful and unique churches found within the square mile of the City of London’.
We will meet at 1.45pm on the pedestrian area in front of the Royal Exchange building, accessed from the top of the steps at Exit 3 of Bank Underground Station. The tour will start at 2pm, with cake served at 4pm and an expected finishing time of around 4.30pm. The tour per person costs £25 members, £19 YIG members, or £29 non-members.
For further information, please contact the event organiser:
Esme Fay - esmefay@aol.com
(01708 437372 (landline) or 078 0289 8835 (M))
Image: https://en.wikipedia.org