Richmond, St Mary Magdalene
Paradise Road, Richmond, TW9 1SN Find on map
Number of bells: 8
Tenor Weight: 18½ cwt
Ground floor ring: No
District: Northern
Practice Night: Tuesday
Ringing Times: Sunday Service:9.00 - 9.25 am, occasionally 6.10 - 6.25pm. Practice: 7.30-9.00pm
Entry: Entry is via a spiral staircase with external door on the south side of the tower
Contact: Tower Captain: Jackie Harrison (07747 111525) jackieharrison456@gmail.com
Website: www.richmondteamministry.org/stmary/bells
The earliest reference to the church is in 1100 from the Merton Abbey records. In 1504 Henry VII renamed the town of Shene after his Yorkshire Earldom and gave two lots of £10 towards the building of a new church in the town of Richmond where he was rebuilding his palace. The tower is the only remaining part of the Tudor church, which has been regularly rebuilt and expanded, and has an attractive viewing gallery over the church, which contains a number of monuments, mainly 17th and 18th century, the earliest being a brass memorial of 1591 to Robert Cotton, a household official of both Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth I.
The 8 bells, dated between 1680 and 1761, were rehung by Eayre and Smith c. 1980.