Ref. 25613-81It may have been a hot summer's day but the sounds in Old Town were more fitting to Christmas time.
A group of bell ringers travelled to Christ Church, Swindon's highest church, from all over the West Country on Wednesday to practice the ancient art of campanology.
The 10 bells were put through their paces for an hour, from 11.30am until 12.30pm.
Ringer Bob Purnell said he and his friends, who come from Melksham, Westbury, Salisbury, Great Cheverell, Corsham and Somerset, do not mind travelling the distance to ring at the church.
Bob, a former maintenance engineer, said: "Christ Church has an absolutely superb peal of bells, which are a delight to use.
"Some of the group have wanted to ring here for a long time so it's a treat to have an hour ringing.
"We were using the Stedman method which is my favourite. It's the most musical one.
"As we are all retired, it's nice to meet up once a month and travel to different churches around the country. I started ringing when I was in the Bradford-on-Avon scouts, and went from there."
Bob, who has been ringing since 1956, added: "My wife Christine grew up in Stratton St Margaret so we used to ring here when she was a girl and we were courting."
At 60 years old, retired teacher Janice Scull, from Westbury, is the youngest ringer in the group.
"Ringing keeps me fit," she said. "The bells in Christ Church are beautiful and smooth. They do exactly what you want them to do.
"There are thousands of different methods but I only know a few. We try and learn new ones every few months.
"It's the first time I have rung in this church and I'd love to come back again."
The 10 bells in the church tower were immortalised by Sir John Betjeman in his poem On Hearing the Full Peal of Ten Bells from Christ Church, Swindon, Wilts.
They are considered to be among the best of their size in the country, and are rung regularly for services, weddings and funerals.
Christ Church, which was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott and built in 1851, currently has more than 30 ringers, whose ages range from eight to over 80.
The church is now in need of urgent repairs to the spire, walls, masonry, windows and drainage.
As a result the Skyline Appeal was set up to raise £1.5m. So far more than £150,000 has been raised.
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