2021 Review Pt 2

 

The week I continue my review of the churches visited in 2021 

The first week of July saw me visiting Dorchester Abbey which was a return visit as I had visited the church many years previous and never did the church justice, I really wanted to go around the grounds and inside the church to see the wall paintings. I ended up going back a second time to get a few more and had to split the blog in two parts to show the place

The second week saw me publish part two of the Dorchester Abbey blog there was so much I wanted to show I felt one blog would not hold it all. The big bonus of the visit was hearing the magnificent Organ being played 

The following week I was on the other side of Oxford at St Mary Charlton-on-Otmoor and as luck would have it the church warden spotted me in the churchyard and let me see inside

You may have noticed I threw a wild card in the middle of the week after the last blog republishing a Ruined Chapel which I had come across while driving past while we were in Wales many years ago. Someone contacted me asking to purchase a copy of the chapel so while I sorted out the photo I updated the blog I also did a little research and found out it used to be called Cornhill Methodist Chapel

 

The next church on the list was St Nicholas Islip which was a return visit  where I got to see inside this beautiful church

The following week I posted St Swithun Merton which was locked when I got there but after walking around the churchyard I hear some one asking if they could help me. A guy was hanging out the window talking to me. I replied I was OK and wonder when the church would be spend, he said he would let me in as he was the churchwarden. Big bonus was he played the organ as well

 

August came around  and I visited St Mary Ambrosden where again I was treated to Organ music

I was playing catch up with the next church All Saints Pusey which I had wanted to visit for a while. I was hoping the church would be open but the person I had arranged to meet was out but as luck would have it he phones a colleague who came and let me in

St Georges Hatford was a church I had not planed to visit but as it was near I made the effort. The churchyard was small and mostly empty of graves and the church was locked but I did take photos through the window which made me want to return sometime

 

August ended with me returning to St Nicholas Ickford which turned out to be worth the effort of waiting for access  

 

In September I returned to St Leonard Waterstock which when I fist visited looked interesting and it turned out it was

 

St John the Baptist Kingstone Bagpuse was the next church. I happened to find the church warden and arranged a visit and was please to be able to go inside this time

 

The following week was another return visit this tie to St Andrew Oddington which turned out to have an interesting memorial to see inside
 

I returned to St Giles Noke for the next visit to see the inside of this lovely little church

In October I published the St Berinus Pilgrimage after meeting some people who were doing one and after visiting the website for the British Pilgrimage Trust I found the St Berinus one and realised I had visited all the churches so I wrote a blog giving directions and what you could see

St Mary Garsington came next in October and it was good to get inside with out the scaffolding surrounding it because of the roof lead being stolen

 

The next church St Michael Rycote was a last moment decision because it is only open up to the end of October. Well it was well worth it and the highlight of the churches I visited in 2021

St Giles Newington has thwarted me for years to see inside but on the way to Rycote I noticed it was open so on the way back I went inside and met some pilgrims, the church was worth visiting as well 

I went along to St Mary Kidlington which has a spire known locally as Our Lady's Needle and is a beautiful church to visit if one that you have a torturous path through a housing estate to reach 

St Michael Cumnor was posted over two blogs on October and November  because of it being so interesting to see inside

 

This followed by a return to St Lawrence Appleton which was beautiful church to look around inside

 

I updated St James Bix next after visiting the older ruined church a few miles away and seeing the new one was open. on my last visit it was locked

 

I was told it was worth visiting St Mary Hapton Poyle when I was in St Mary Kidlington and it was certainty a beautiful little church to visit
 

I visited St Andrew Wheatfield next after arranging to meet the church warden and see inside. Another gem worth seeing

 

As St Mary Adwell was not far away I arranged to visit that one next and was very pleased I did

 I needed to get a church with some Christmas decorations for the last post of the year and went along to St Barnabus Horton-cum-Studley which turned out to be a very nice Victorian church

 

That's my review of 2021, more churches that I expected and a few  I added to the list that were not on it to start with. I still have a couple of churches to post from 2021 which will be posted over the next two weeks. I tank you all for supporting me by reading my blogs and hope you will all do so again in 2022 where I hope to visit more churches for you to see

Till Next time Stay Safe and have a wonderful weekend