A MELKSHAM couple have rung the bells at Westminster Abbey in London to commemorate their 60 years service as bell ringers.
Bob and Chris Purnell have been ringing the bells at St Michael and All Angels Church since 1965 – and before that in other local churches – and had a special invitation to ring the bells at Westminster Abbey.
They are also working to keep bell-ringing in the family and had their daughters and grandchildren join them on Christmas Eve in Melksham.
Chris said, “It was an honour to ring at Westminster as not many people get the chance to do that.
“One of our greatest pleasures was ringing with our family on Christmas Eve at St Michael’s last year; our daughters Helen and Karen and grandchildren James and Ella joined us in the tower for the festive service.”
Bob and Chris have been bell-ringers since the 1950s – Bob as a boy scout in Bradford on Avon, and Chris as a girl guide in Swindon. They met in a belfry in Corsham before marrying and moving to Melksham in the mid-1960s.
Both are vice-presidents of the Salisbury Diocesan Guild of Ringers and have rung in towers all over the country. Chris teaches at Edington Ringing Centre, where another of their grandsons, Robbie, is learning the ancient art, and Bob is a bells advisor for the Salisbury Diocese.
Chris added, “Ringing has played a great part in our lives; it is a lovely hobby and, as well as having lots of ringing friends, we get to visit and ring in amazing places.
“I think it is churches that have changed the most in the 60 years I’ve been ringing. When I was younger going to church was a solemn affair but nowadays it’s much more welcoming and relaxed; it’s definitely an improvement.”
