Church reopens for private prayer from Wed 24 June
The church will reopen for private prayer only from Wednesday 24 June
I am delighted to say that the church will re-open next Wednesday. As with all churches, working in accordance with government guidelines, we shall be opening for private prayer only. We are opening the Lady Chapel which will be accessed by the priest's door and there will be a marked route to the west end of the church where there will be an opportunity to light candles in remembrance of those who have died and for other prayer intentions. As we are uncertain what impact this will have, and in order to follow necessary hygiene expectations which keep everybody safe, we shall be opening for a few hours (10.00 til 2.00) on four days week (Wed - Sat) to begin with. We can relax this and open for longer and on more days as we get used to how this works.
We felt that the Lady Chapel is the place that most people would wish to have open and we will monitor the numbers coming in and revise our plans if we need to. There will be very clear signage from outside (both north and south sides) to ensure everyone knows how to get in.
This is a wonderful moment in the life of SMR: a real visible sign of the recovery from the turbulent times we have been living through. I am very aware that some people (possibly many people) had hoped we would open earlier, and it's marvellous that everything is on track (despite significant floods in the Undercroft and parish office yesterday) for Wednesday morning.
More blog posts
Preached by the Canon Guy Wilkinson
We are so very excited to be part of The Forsytes , a new TV adaptation of John Galsworthy's beloved novels. Produced for Channel 5 and Masterpiece, the show’s first season - which premieres on Monday 20th October 2025 - was filmed almost entirely in and around Bristol between May and August 2024, with significant scenes filmed within St Mary Redcliffe. You can read more about the production on Bristol 24/7 and watch the series' trailer below.
Preached by the Canon Dr Stephen Spencer
On Monday 13th October 2025, members of the SMR staff team visited Bristol Archives to meet Senior Archivist Lucy Bonner and retired archivist Anne Bradley who has been leading the process of transferring archival documents from the church to the Create Centre - home of Bristol Archives - for a number of years. The purpose of the visit was to gather information on best practice for storing, preserving, organizing and transferring documentation to the archives, and to receive advice on how to meet the challenge of archiving in the digital era in which most documents are created and held digitally, rather than printed. This shift in process has had significant implications for the management of archival material, processes for which must now respond to risks associated with the fast pace of technological change and the likely future redundancy of current forms of digital storage technology. During the visit, the team were shown examples of important documents from the church archives, including the original deed for Redcliffe Pipe and the associated pipe lands, dating from around 1190-1200; the founding charter of Queen Elizabeth's Free School of Grammar and Writing from 1571; the C15th deed for one of William Canynges' chantries; and materials relating to the major Victorian restoration of St Mary Redcliffe that took place between 1842 and 1872. The staff team will continue working with Anne and Bristol Archives to embed processes that will ensure current data is preserved for the benefit of future generations.
Preached by the Canon Dr Stephen Spencer
Preached by the Revd Laura Verrall-Kelly, Associate Vicar
