Abandoned church to ring bells on Christmas Day
10:36am Wednesday 19th December 2012 in Latest News By Wiltshire Times Reporter
CHURCH bells in a deserted Wiltshire village will ring on Christmas Day for the first time in more than 70 years.
Residents were made to move out of Imber on the Salisbury Plain during?the Second World War?so the army could use it for training and were never allowed back. It has been used by the military ever since.
But for the first time, they are allowing bell-ringer Jenny Hancock access on Christmas Day, so she can ring the church bells on her 56th birthday.
Ms Hancock, of Bellott Drive, Corsham,?said she was happy about fulfilling her ambition of ringing the bells of the 700-year-old St Giles Church on her special day.
She said: "My birthday is on Christmas Day and it's very rare that I get to ring on that day for me. I thought it would be a?lovely place to ring for my birthday.
"I usually ring at Lacock, Corsham and Melksham and it will be a band from that area that will be ringing with me on Christmas Day."
The original bells were taken out in 1950 when all the furnishings and fittings were dispersed to other churches, but in August 2010 a group of bell ringers installed some new bells.
The army has been training in the deserted buildings in Imber since 1943, but the group will ring a quarter peal at the Grade I-listed church, which is due to last about 45 minutes. It will be open to the public.
The military only allows access to the abandoned village on a handful of occasions each year.
Neil Skelton, custodian of St Giles Church, said: "It is a very sad story but we're certainly making history on Christmas Day.?
Despite ?3,000 being spent on the church over the last eight years, Mr Skelton said it was extremely unlikely that it would come back into permanent use.
"One never knows. It's been repaired and it's all in good order," he added.
"So should the village ever come back into use the church is ready to go back into full use. But I think if it ever does happen it's a long way in the future."
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