Britten's Ceremony of Carols

for 1 hour
St Bartholomew the Great
West Smithfield City of London, EC1A 9DS, United Kingdom

This contains the entire Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten, accompanied by harp and sung by upper voices. Britten’s settings are interspersed among a sequence of readings and congregational hymns. The beauty of this music is especially astonishing, since it was composed on board a Swedish cargo vessel, the MS Axel Johnson, on which Britten was returning to the UK from the US in 1942. Confined to a small, airless cabin, an enormous refrigerator compressor running constantly next door keeping the freight cold, Britten composed these beautiful pieces.

There is no cost to attend this service and there are no tickets, but we advise you to arrive in good time to avoid missing out. Doors open at 5:30pm.

Members of the Friends and of the church’s stewardship schemes are welcome to reserve seats at this service.

Mulled wine, mince pies, and other refreshments are available in the Cloister after this service – please do come and join us!

More info

St Bartholomew the Great

London's oldest parish church, with an excellent liturgy, a professional choir, and a vibrant congregation drawn from across London. Join us in person or online!

At the heart of the Smithfield area, with its Hospital, pubs, restaurants, and market, is a church built when Henry I, son of William the Conqueror, was King of England. It survived the Great Fire of 1666 and the bombs dropped in Zeppelin raids in World War I and during the Blitz in World War II.

Today the Church has a reputation not only for wonderful Romanesque architecture, but also for traditional formal worship, marvellous music and intelligent preaching. It has also appeared in a series of award-winning films including Four Weddings and a Funeral, Shakespeare in Love, The End of the Affair, Amazing Grace, Elizabeth: The Golden Age, and The Other Boleyn Girl. It has also appeared in a number of television programmes including Madame Bovary, The Real Sherlock Holmes, Spooks, and The League of Gentlemen Christmas Special.

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Get in touch

Marcus Walker

Great St Bartholomew Parish Office
Church House
Cloth Fair
London

EC1A 7JQ
Rector
+44 (0)20 7600 0440

Our website

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Britten's Ceremony of Carols

for 1 hour
St Bartholomew the Great
West Smithfield City of London, EC1A 9DS, United Kingdom

This contains the entire Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten, accompanied by harp and sung by upper voices. Britten’s settings are interspersed among a sequence of readings and congregational hymns. The beauty of this music is especially astonishing, since it was composed on board a Swedish cargo vessel, the MS Axel Johnson, on which Britten was returning to the UK from the US in 1942. Confined to a small, airless cabin, an enormous refrigerator compressor running constantly next door keeping the freight cold, Britten composed these beautiful pieces.

There is no cost to attend this service and there are no tickets, but we advise you to arrive in good time to avoid missing out. Doors open at 5:30pm.

Members of the Friends and of the church’s stewardship schemes are welcome to reserve seats at this service.

Mulled wine, mince pies, and other refreshments are available in the Cloister after this service – please do come and join us!

More info

Safeguarding

The parish of Great St Bartholomew is committed to the safeguarding of children, young people and adults. We follow the House of Bishops guidance and policies and have our own Parish Safeguarding Officer(s), PSOs. The Diocese of London’s safeguarding pages contain vital links and information including contacts for the Diocesan Safeguarding Advisor (DSA) who advise our PSOs. If you are concerned that a child or adult has been harmed or may be at risk of harm please contact the DSA. If you have immediate concerns about the safety of someone, please contact the police and your local authority Children or Adults Services.

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St Bartholomew the Great Charity No. 1163024