Please note that the tower appeal is now closed with all work having been carried out.

For the latest on the Widecombe Church Bells. Click here.

St Pancras Church in Widecombe is world famous and is included in Simon Jenkins' recent book "England's Thousand Best Churches". It is known as the Cathedral of the Moor, reflecting its relatively large size for the size of the village - and its tower, which is visible from a wide area.

The Tower was constructed before the Great Storm of 1638, when a pinnacle from the top of the tower  fell  into the Church during a thunder storm, killing 4 parishioners during Evensong.  It is in need of repair - all the internal wooden floors are badly infected with wood rot and death watch beetle, and must be lowered and repaired.  The whole of the outside of the Tower has to be re-pointed, and the pinnacles rebuilt. Moorland weather takes its toll on the granite tower, which is porous, and has over the years caused considerable damage.

This is a major undertaking for a small community of 250 people, and the most recent estimated total cost for the work is now close to  £200,000.

A small donation from every visitor would soon raise the money needed.

Please send a donation, however small, to:-

The Rector

The Rectory

Widecombe-in-the-Moor

Newton Abbot

TQ13 7TF

Devon, England

Tel/Fax 01364 621 334

John Webber wrote a poem about the Tower. Please click here to read it.

LETTERBOX HUNTERS will be pleased to know that there is a CHURCH stamp in the South Transept of St. Pancras Church.  It is there for your enjoyment, so please use it.  Nearby there is a Fund Raising display for you to learn more about some of the many repairs we are undertaking this year.  The Bells will be lowered and the floors within the Tower will be repaired and replaced - this is why the Tower will be closed this year, and entry to the building will only be through the South Porch.

Please close the INK PAD when you have made your stamp, ready for use by the next LETTERBOX HUNTER, and enjoy your visit to Widecombe.  We hope you will return soon, and that your contribution will have helped us to restore our lovely Church.  Thank you.

From the Rector - May 2000

Tower & Bells - the work on the inside of the Tower of Widecombe Church is now progressing. May 3rd and 4th proved to be most exciting when Nicholsons Bellhangers came to lower and take away the peal of six Bells. The lowering of the Bells (the tenor bell weighing over 12 cwt) needed all the skills of the experts to safely lower them from the frame where they hd been swinging since the 1930s, when they were last lowered.

With all six Bells sitting in the body of the Church on the evening of 4th may, opportunity was taken, with the initiative of the History group, to invite Preb. John Scott (Diocesan Bell Adviser) to give a talk on the history of Church Bells in general, and Widecombe Bells  in particular.

The talk proved to be quite fascinating, especially to learn that the three oldest Bells would have been cast in a pit in the ground in the vicinity of the Church in 1632!!

An attendance of about 100 people thoroughly enjoyed the talk, which produced £206 for the Tower & bells Fund. next morning the Bells were lifted into the back of a lorry to be transported to the Bell Works at Bridport in Dorset, to be returned and overhauled. We look forward to their re-instatement in a brand new steel frame in the first week in September.

From the Rector - December 2000

Now that phase 1 of the works to the Church Tower have been completed, we are now in a position to publish the first set of figures.

Our fund raising campaign has been extremely successful - thanks to the generosity and hard work of so many of our parishioners & friends. The total amount raised specifically for the Appeal so far, including all grants & donations, as well as the Fund Raising events, amounts to £82184.42p. Well done!

The total cost of all the phase one internal works to the Tower, including all professional fees, and the work to the Bells, amounted to £103,862.77p. The shortfall of £21,678.35p. has been met from our reserves, which have been built up over the years to prepare for just such a contingency.

Now for the bad news! We have now heard from English Heritage.... they will not be in a position to help fund any of the work to the Tower, specifically the phase 2 work, which is to re-point the outside of the Tower & the Pinnacles. Our advice is that it is essential to complete phase 2 as soon as possible. During the recent storms & rain, the water has poured into the Tower: if this continues it will undo the good work completed thus far. We have therefore decided that phase 2 must still go ahead in 2001. This will involve raising at least another £100,000. This is a huge amount for a small Parish, and I can only appeal to all our parishioners & friends to continue their generous efforts to support the preservation of the Tower for future generations. Further Fund Raising events will be announced during the course of the year - see below details of Widecombe Fete.

Back to Top