Reigate, St Mary Magdalene
Chart Lane, Reigate, RH2 7RN Find on map
Number of bells: 10
Tenor Weight: 19¾ cwt
Ground floor ring: No
District: Southern
Practice Night: Wednesday
Ringing Times: Sunday Service: 9.45-10.30am (1st ,3rd and 5th Sunday), 5.45-6.30pm. ( 2nd and 4th Sunday). Practice: 7.45-9.15pm
On the first, third, and fifth Sunday of the month, there will be ringing from 09:45 a.m., for the 10:30 a.m. morning service.
On the second and fourth Sunday of the month, there will be ringing from 5:45 p.m. for the 6:30 p.m. evening service.
Entry: Entry to the tower is via a small door on the left, just inside the main church door. A narrow spiral staircase leads to the ringing chamber.
Contact: Tower Correspondent: vjgingamum@hotmail.com Valerie Jones. Tower Captain: irishdg@blueyonder.co.uk David Gilm
Website:
A church probably existed on the present site before the Norman Conquest, although it was not until the 12th century that there is formal documented record. It was largely built of local stone and a number of significant changes have taken place over the centuries. A ring of 8 bells was cast in 1784, with a further two added in 1899. The tower itself was taken down and re-built during the nineteenth century. A clock was installed as a memorial to those who died in the First World War, which is now driven electrically. The bells were re-hung by the Whitechapel foundry in 1984 with the frame unaltered, which is still basically the original 1784 installation. The Cranston library - the first public library established in England, was founded in 1701 by the Rev. Andrew Cranston and housed in a small chamber above the Vicar’s vestry. Early donors included John Evelyn, John Flamstead and Granville Sharp. The library contains some 2,400 volumes and is open for research by arrangement.