Friends

The Friends of Bath Abbey exist to provide a permanent link with those visitors to the Abbey who would like to stay in touch with the life of the Abbey but who may not use the Abbey as their regular place of worship.

We hold a number of social events throughout the year and regularly publish and circulate an informative annual report. We hope that through these events we can keep alive the link with all friends, locally, throughout the nation and also worldwide and so remind them about the life of the Abbey.

Legacies and Gifts

The Friends of Bath Abbey welcome and receive with gratitude generous legacies from former Friends and donations from existing Friends. The money is used carefully to provide additions for the lasting benefit of the Abbey.

Our most visible recent project has been the introduction of the twelve angels above the acoustic screens behind the Choir Stalls. Designed by Paul Fletcher and carved from lime wood by Laurence Beckford, the angels are depicted as musicians, six on each side of the Choir, eleven playing mediaeval instruments and one conductor, very obviously ignored by the others. We have been able to enhance these beautiful images with clever lighting.

We have also provided improved storage for the Abbey archives, contributed to the stunning revamp of the Abbey shop and are currently helping to fund the very necessary modifications to the electrical installation in the building. Not everything we help to fund is on view, but we aim to make our contributions useful, beautiful and long-lasting.

If you would like to help us restore and keep up the fabric of the Abbey in this way we would be very grateful to receive any donation you may wish to make. Merely joining as a member of the Friends of Bath Abbey is a valuable way to contribute to the enhancement of this beautiful building and you can see how to do this below.

Become a Friend of the Abbey

The Abbey Office, 12 Kingston Buildings, Bath, BA1 1LT or download the application form.

Further information about these events is available from the Secretary Mrs Ros Key-Pugh on 01225 427525 or email:roskeypugh@ic24.net

Thursday March 18 12:30 to 2:30 pm a three-course lunch to include coffee.

At The Shrubbery Restaurant on the ground floor of the Allen Building of Bath College of Higher Education, Avon Street. The charge for the lunch is £13.00/ £14 for non Friends. If 50 or more book for this event some free musical light entertainment will be provided to follow the meal as we would then have sole use of the restaurant – so please invite your friends.

BOOKINGS BY MARCH 1 PLEASE.

Tuesday June 8 Coach trip to Cadbury and Tyntesfield 9:30 am to 5.30pm.

Our coach will leave Orange Grove at 9.30 and drive first to the Cadbury Garden Centre for coffee (cost not included) and a look round the shops and garden centre. We then continue in order to arrive at noon at Tyntesfield, a spectacular Victorian Gothic-revival country house, lying 7 miles from Bristol, purchased by the National Trust in 2002.

There is a 500m walk from the coach drop-off point to the house; a courtesy bus is available for this little journey and there is a place on the booking form where you can indicate if you would like a seat on it.

Arrangements for lunch are optional. You can bring your own and picnic – there is space under cover if it’s raining and hot drinks may be bought at the catering kiosk. If you prefer you may pre-order and pay for sandwiches or hot snacks. Please obtain all details from Ros Key-Pugh.

After lunch, from 1.15 onwards, we take a self-guided tour of the House and Chapel and explore the gardens in our own time but meet at the coach to leave at 4.30 pm returning to Bath at 5:30.

The cost of this trip for National Trust members is £10.00 per person, £19.30 for non-NT visitors as the charge for entry to Tyntesfield House, Gardens and Chapel without NT membership is £9.30 p.p. and this must be prepaid when booking because Ros Key-Pugh has to pay for all entries on arrival.

Tuesday June 29 in Bath Abbey. Entry by SE door from 6.00 pm for 6.15pm start.

The Abbey’s Patronal Festival celebration will begin with a talk by Michael Blandford, Chairman of the Friends of Wells Cathedral, on ‘Bishop Reginald, Founder of Wells Cathedral and St John’s Hospital in Bath’. Bishop Reginald was an illegitimate son of a Bishop, a man who walked with Kings, Popes and Archbishops, one of the leading churchmen of his day who was central to the quarrel between Henry II and Becket and is buried by the High Altar in the original Bath Abbey. This will be followed by Choral Evensong at 7.00pm. All are welcome to attend both these parts of the evening freely.

After the service we shall enjoy the Patronal Supper - a cold buffet with wine, and dessert followed by coffee and mints. The limited space available for supper means that we can offer only 80 tickets: they will cost £15.00 per person and it will be first-come, first-served!

Thursday July 15 from 10.00 am to 12.00 pm.

Saturday August 14 in the Abbey. A talk ‘The Abbey Memorial Tablets’ by Jeremy Key-Pugh

Tickets cost £5 for Friends or £6 for non-Friends. Entry is from 6.15 pm for tea/coffee and biscuits. The talk starts at 6.40 pm.

Saturday September 11 9.00 am - 7.00 pm coach trip to Nunney, Mells & Wells.

Leaving from the Orange Grove at 9.00 we go first to Nunney for a tour of the castle led by Dr John Wroughton, followed at 11.00 by coffee at The George Inn. We go on to Mells at 11. 30 for a short walking tour of St Andrew’s Church and the village. Lunch is at 1.00pm, (a picnic or pre-ordered 2-course lunch for £10 at the Talbot Inn). At 2.15 we rejoin the coach to go to Wells Cathedral where we shall be taken on a tour including the new developments and some of the Cathedral Treasures. We shall then be treated to tea with some of the Friends of Wells Cathedral before Choral Evensong at 5.15 after which we return to Bath. Tickets cost £20/£22 for non Friends. Lunch at Mells is an optional extra.