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May 3, 2003
 Compared
to many churches across Norfolk, All Saints’
at Bawdeswell is a relative youngster. Yet it also
boasts a little-known wealth of history. As villagers
prepare to mark the 50th anniversary of the laying
of its foundation stone, RACHEL BANHAM found out
what makes this place of worship so special.
Pictures by Graham Corney.
The tale of Bawdeswell Church is a true story of tragedy
to triumph, of a building that has been devastated more
than once but has risen time and again – through
the work of skilled craftsmen and its loyal parishioners.
The Victorian church was destroyed in November 1944
when a Mosquito plane returning from a mission over
Germany crashed into it.
The plane had iced up on its way back to Bexwell aerodrome
at Downham Market and was struggling to land at Swanton
Morley when it hit electricity cables at Bawdeswell.
It plummeted into the church and the resulting fire
damaged nearby houses. The plane’s crew, Pilot
Officer James Mclean and navigator Sgt Melvin Tansley,
were killed but, miraculously, no villagers were hurt.
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| Supporter – churchwarden Robin Taylor inside
All Saints’ Church at Bawdeswell has amassed
details about the rebuilding of the church. |
Today, a plaque in their memory, made from parts of
the aircraft’s engines by former churchwarden John
Ames, remains on the church wall.
Bawdeswell’s then rector, the late Rev HGB Folland,
who had arrived in the village just a few weeks before
the crash, swiftly began organising the building of
the new church.
He commissioned Norfolk architect James Fletcher-Watson,
and work started in March 1953. The foundation stone
at the west end of the church was laid by Sir Edmund
Bacon on July 21 that year. The completed church was
dedicated by the Bishop of Norwich, the Rt Rev P M Herbert,
just over two years later.
Today, All Saints’ Church remains traditional on
the outside but well lit, comfortable, and spacious
inside – a seamless blend of the old and the new.
When we visited, the heady, but delicate, fragrance
of lilies and roses, still gathered in spectacular arrangements
to celebrate a wedding, permeated the building as spring
sunshine streamed through the beautiful stained-glass
roundels in the windows.
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Devastated – the inside of the then Victorian
church after being destroyed in a wartime plane
crash.
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Most of the glass was made in the Rhineland during
the 16th and 17th centuries and was given by Richard
Q Gurney in 1970, in memory of his father Quintin E
Gurney who was a churchwarden from 1912 to 1968.
Richard Gurney’s son David, of Bawdeswell Hall,
is one of the present churchwardens.
“It’s a very easy church to run because of
the design. And it’s a lovely modern building that
lends itself to things like flower festivals and concerts
that we have from time to time,” he said.
Fellow churchwarden Robin Taylor is also an enthusiastic
supporter of the church. When All Saints’ celebrated
its 40th anniversary, people of all ages came forward
with information, including student Laura Downs who
had written a thesis on the subject at Croydon College
in the 1980s.
Others have contacted Robin as editor of the parish
magazine, giving him more details about the rebuilding
of the church.
“War damage compensation provided £15,000
for the new building and parishioners raised a further
£5000 for its furnishings and extras. The congregation
used a Primitive Methodist chapel in the village until
the church was completed,” Robin said.
“Prime costs were £12,500 but the spire added
almost £700, furnishing £1000 and the organ
£650. Other fittings and furnishings, such as
windows and electrics, made up the balance.” More
All
Saints' at Bawdeswell - a history
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