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The Bells of St. Andrew’s, Old Headington

In the Public Record Office can be found Inventories of Goods belonging to some Oxfordshire Churches in 1553. These state that the Church of Headington possessed three bells. Of these three, one survives. It forms the Seventh of the present ring of eight and was cast circa 1470. We do not know the name of its founder but he is thought to be the successor of John Danyell who cast bells in London between 1450 and 1470.

It is likely that the Sixth and Tenor bells were in the original ring of three but if they were, they have since been recast. The present Tenor was cast in 1613 by William Yare who had a foundry in Reading. The Sixth bell, dated 1624, is a very unusual and ornate casting by Richard Purdue. Purdue was an itinerant founder and because of this we may assume that this bell was cast in, or close to, the churchyard. The bell bears two large coats of arms. One is of the Prince of Wales and the other is of Thomas Whorwood, Lord of "Heddingtonn". The bell is also adorned with an ornate border above its inscription.

The Fifth bell was cast in 1654 by Michael Darbie who was also an itinerant. Some of his bells can also be found at New College in Oxford and Stanton St. John. The Third and Fifth bells are by John Briant of Hertford, cast in 1792. Briant also cast bells for St. Ebbe’s in Oxford, Adderbury, Cuddesdon and Wheatley.

Until 1967 these six older bells hung in a timber frame made by Michael Darbie who cast the Fifth bell. It was similar in design to the older part of the one at New College, also by Darbie. The new cast-iron and steel frame was made to hold eight bells. In 1974 the Treble and Second bells were cast at the Whitechapel Bellfoundry in London and hung in the same year.

The two new bells have always been considered a bad match with the six older bells and they have seldom been used. The elm headstocks, which were fitted to the six older bells in the 1967 restoration, have twisted quite considerably over the last thirty years making the bells more difficult to ring.

A new band of bellringers was formed in 1998 and Sunday Service ringing has now been firmly established. With the rekindled enthusiasm of bellringing in Headington and the wish to obtain a useable ring of eight, an appeal was launched in 1999 to recast the two 1974 bells and rehang all eight on new or restored fittings. The two recast bells will be of larger profiles and tuned to fit in with the six older bells. The third bell will also be tuned to make the match more sympathetic.

Fund-raising has been so successful that work has now started on the bells and it is hoped to have six of them ringing by Easter, followed shortly by all eight in time for a service of dedication on Sunday 17th September 2000.

Mark Walker
Ringing Master, St. Andrew’s, Headington

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