THEY make the bells ring out for church services and weddings. HAYLEY MILLS meets the campanologists of Abergavenny.

SAINT Mary’s Priory Church in Abergavenny has a thriving group of bell ringers who meet weekly to practise and ring on a Sunday and at special occasions.

The current Tower Captain at the church is Peter Munday, 65, who started bell ringing when he was eight years old.

He grew up in Basingstoke and his father was a member of the choir and later went on to bell ringing.

He said: “I started because my parents were bell ringers and its a very family orientated activity.

“Although I started young, my father was very experienced and didn’t let me get into bad habits.”

Mr Munday explained that the younger that people start the better, with the best age to be around 12 years old.

He had previously carried out bell ringing in Wargrave and Twyford in Berkshire, before moving to Abergavenny and taking up bell ringing with St Mary’s two years ago.

His two sons also learnt the skill of bell ringing from the age of eight, and now they ring with their father at special occasions.

He said: “Bell ringing is like riding a bike. One you have it you just might need a small refresh every now and again but you don’t lose it.

“I find it relaxing and I enjoy the team effort in having to work together to get the best possible sound.”

There are thousands of methods that are published in books that can be rung on the bells and Mr Munday says that he can manage about 50 without revision.

He explained that you need about four bells to be rung, with one person per bell, but it can go up to 16 people.

St Mary’s usually has six bells rung on a Sunday.

He said: “St Mary’s has a group of 12 to 13 bell ringers, but we are always looking for people wanting to take up the skill and practise with us.”

He warns that it is not as easy and straight forward as it seems.

He said: “But through perseverance it is something that most people can pick up.”

A common misconception is that you need to be strong to bell ring, but he said that this is just not true, with people able to use a bell to suit them.

Plus, people do not need to be able to read music as in method ringing the bells are referred to by number, with the treble, the one highest in pitch, being number one and the other bells numbered by their pitch (two, three, four, etc) sequentially down the scale.

Mr Munday explained that he met his wife, Anne, through bell ringing.

She took it up as her parents were also bell ringers, and they met when they both lived in Surrey and both run at Guildford Cathedral.

Also taking up bell ringing at the age of eight is Phil Weeks, 82, who travels from Ebbw Vale to St Mary’s to ring.

He explained that he took up bell ringing just before the Second World War broke out in 1939.

However, church bells in the British Isles stopped ringing for the duration of the war as they would be rung to announce an invasion of the country.

Once the possibility of German invasion had diminished the restriction on ringing church bells was lifted.

This allowed Mr Weeks to continue bell ringing in 1945.

He said: “My father was a bell ringer for 70 years and my grandfather was a bell ringer before him.

“It’s an interesting hobby to have and I do it for exercise.”

He has also rung at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff and Newport Cathedral.

He has rung regularly at St Mary’s for the past five years.

He said: “The sound of church bells ringing is wonderful to hear and the ones at Abergavenny are particularly lovely.

“It would be nice to see younger people taking it up and it has a great social side.”

St Mary’s has a ring of 10 bells, the tenor weighing in at 25 cwts 18 lbs (1.28 tons).

St Mary’s Priory Church, Abergavenny, was founded in 1087 as a Benedictine Priory alongside the frontier castle in the reign of William 2nd, by Hameline de Ballon, the first Norman Lord of Abergavenny, and was connected with the Lordship thereafter.

At the dissolution of the monasteries in 1536-39, the parishioners bought the four bells, weighing a total of 45.5 cwt (2.3 tones), which hung in the Priory Church.

The tenor was recast in 1603 and the 3rd recast in 1666, by the Purdues of Bristol. The treble was recast in1706 by Abraham Rudall.

The bells were augmented to five in 1835 and then to six in 1845 by Jeffries and Price of Bristol. To commemorate Queen Victoria’s Jubilee in 1887, the bells were rehung and augmented to eight by Llewellins and James of Bristol, the same firm recasting the tenor in 1893.

Finally, in 1947, these bells were replaced by the present 10 from the Loughborough foundry, in thanksgiving for the end of the Second World War.

They are considered to be the finest ring of 10 bells in Christendom and bell-ringers from all over the country come to ring the changes.

Speaking previously about the importance of the ringing of the bells, the Vicar of Abergavenny Fr Mark Soady said: “Even those who don’t come to Church to worship will hear the bells ringing and will know that Christ is worshiped in this place. This gentle act of mission is invaluable in the life of St Mary’s.”

The medieval 6th of the old ring, dated 1308, is preserved in the nave and inscribed ‘May the bell of John last many years’ – perhaps indicated that this was one of a peal of bells donated by John de Hastings, the man responsible for the first restoration of the Priory Church.

St Mary’s bell ringers practice at 7pm on Monday evenings.

The bells are rung before the 11am Parish Eucharist on Sundays and also at weddings and other special occasions.

If you fancy a new hobby, or have rung before and would like to come back, simply turn up to the practice on a Monday evening.

If you would like more information about bell ringing at St Mary's, contact Peter Munday on 01873 737616 or email pete.munday@yahoo.com