Bellringing

English style church bellringing is a fascinating activity that requires physical co-ordination, a sense of rhythm and good listening skills. It provides mental and physical stimulation, along with the social aspect of working with other ringers.

There is a brief introduction to ringing on the website of my home tower, All Saints Wokingham.  Hear the sound of English style ringing .

My ringing career

I learnt to ring in 1959 at St Wilfrid's, Kirkby in Ashfield, Nottinghamshire (see pictures).

I rang with the Southwell Diocesan Guild and the East Derbyshire and West Notts Association.

When Kirkby was augmented from five bells to eight in 2001, I was in the band that rang the first peal on the eight.

I am a member of the Cambridge University Guild of Change Ringers,. I rang at Guildford Cathedral before I married. I have rung at All Saints Wokingham  since the late 1970s.

I celebrated 50 years of ringing with a peal of Kirkby-in-Ashfield Surprise Major rung at Wokingham, with a band  includng people who rang with me in Kirkby and Cambridge as well as Wokingham, see pictures.

Teaching ringers

A lot of my time is involved with training. I am chairman of the Oxford Diocesan Guild Education Committee and Sonning Deanery Branch Training Co-ordinator.

I am a member of the Central Council of Church Bellringers. I chaired the Education Committee for 8 years. I am a member of the Public Relations Committee and chairman of the Biographies Committee. I led the working group that set up The Ringing Foundation .

I have run courses in many parts of the country.

My most unusual training assignment was to teach the actors who played bellringers in the Midsomer Murders episode ' Ring Out Your Dead'. See the article about making the programme.

Writing about ringing

I have written several books on ringing (mostly for CC Publications) including The Learning Curve, 102 articles about learning and teaching that were published between 1999-2007 in The Ringing World.

I wrote a series of articles about music in ringing  after being invited to give a talk to a group of musicians.

My book 'Living Heritage ', a social history of bellringing in Wokingham over the last 300 years, is written mainly for non-ringers.

Like most ringers, I have rung in hundreds of different towers in UK and abroad, enjoying the universal welcome that is characteristic among ringers. You can find details of over 6000 ringing towers in Dove's Guide.

Ringing &  technology

I use modern teaching aids including simulators. I have produced training aids, including CDs and !Strike .

I made a counter-rotating dumbbell (which works with a simulator). I didn't realise it at the time, but it is based on a similar principle to that used by my namesake, the 18th century John Harrison in his marine chronometer.

Many years ago, I built some interesting models  that represent the way change ringing works, and I do talks on the technology of bellringing, and the maths of ringing (for adults) and a talk to school maths pupils .