Wells Cathedral Email Newsletter
June 2015
This is a printed copy of the email newsletter from Wells Cathedral. If you would like to receive
this by email please send your details to marketing@wellscathedral.uk.net or follow the link on our
website.
What's On in June
Sunday 7 June, 4.30-5.00pm
MESSIAEN MEDITATION III
Matthew Owens and Prebendary Elsa van der Zee (narrator) will
give the annual devotional performance of Olivier Messiaen’s
Messe de la Pentecôte from 4.30-5.00pm on Sunday 7 June.
Admission free, retiring collection in aid of Wells Cathedral Music.
Thursday 11 June, 1.05 - 1.40pm
FREE LUNCHTIME ORGAN RECITAL
The Assistant Organist, Jonathan Vaughn, will give a lunchtime
organ recital on Thursday 11 June from 1.05pm-1.40pm. His
programme will include works by Thomas Hewitt-Jones,
Buxtehude, Mendelssohn, Bairstow, and Wagner. Admission free, retiring collection in aid of
Wells Cathedral Music.
Wednesday 17 June, 7.30pm
SUMMER ORGAN FESTIVAL: MATTHEW OWENS
The third recital of the 2015 Summer Organ Festival will be given by Matthew Owens, Organist
and Master of the Choristers, on Wednesday 17 June at 7.30pm. The programme features
organ music of the Baroque era as well as two of his recent compositions.
Tickets: £10 (including a glass of wine or soft drink after the performance), available at the door
or from the Cathedral Shop Box Office (01749 672773). This concert is generously sponsored
by Mrs Pamela Pye.
Monday 15th June – Sunday 28th June
SIMON EELES POTTERY
The Eeles family pottery will be demonstrating the craft of throwing pots throughout the
exhibition of 300 pieces of new work in the South Cloisters. The exhibition is on from 15th to
28th of June.
Saturday 27 June, 5.15pm
DIOCESAN CHORAL FESTIVAL EVENSONG
On Saturday 27 June the Cathedral will welcome parish church choirs from across the Diocese
who will sing with our Boy Choristers and Vicars Choral for the annual Diocesan Choral
Association Festival Evensong. This Festival Service will take some of the themes of the Magna
Carta: 'Church, State, Freedom' and explores what it means to be a people who live in a society
in which there exist freedoms and also expectations and responsibilities laid upon free people.
Our service will take place in the Nave at 5.15pm. All welcome.
LUNCHTIME CONCERTS
A number of free lunchtime concerts also take place at the Cathedral during June. Please check
our website for more details.
Join us for THE BIG LUNCH on Cathedral Green
Sunday 7 June, 11:30am - 2:00pm
The Big Lunch is a very simple idea from the
Eden Project. The aim is to get as many of the 63
million people in the UK as possible to have
lunch with their neighbours for a few hours of
community, friendship and fun.
Since The Big Lunch started in 2009, thousands of Big Lunches have taken place in all kinds of
communities – from street parties to community picnics, with tonnes of people taking part each
year. A whopping 4.83 million people took part in The Big Lunch in 2014.
Wells Cathedral is delighted to invite friends and neighbours to celebrate its own Big Lunch on
Cathedral Green on Sunday 7 June, 12.00-2.30pm. Bring your own picnic or treat yourself to
pulled pork rolls, ice cream, quintessentially British cream teas and drinks which will be among
the goodies on offer to purchase on the day.
A number of our local care home residents have also been invited to enjoy a spot of lunch here
at the Cathedral and courtesy of the Chapter of Wells in the spirit of community, friendship and
fun!
Free Weekly Window Walks : June
Join us from 11.15am each Saturday and Wednesday when our
FREE stained glass window walks take place showcasing the
Cathedral’s unique stained glass.
Lasting 20-25 minutes, from April to October, the window walks
start at 11.15am every Saturday and Wednesday. There is no
booking required, simply gather at the Information Desk in the Entry Cloister to join the Window
Walk tour of your choice.
We offer a different theme each month. During June our theme will be "CLOTHED IN LIGHT” explore the beauty of the fabrics displayed in the South Nave aisle windows and the methods
used to create them. Remember to bring binoculars!
Weekly Embroideries Walks
Our stained glass window walks will finish in time for you to then join an embroideries walk if
you wish. Again, a different theme is offered each month; during June we'll be looking at the
flowers in our embroideries, on their own or as part of the overall design. A person who was an
inspiration in the early days was Louisa Pesel; learn more about her as we look at the
embroideries. (No Embroideries Walk on Saturday 6 June).
Friends Day 2015: Saturday 6th June
The Friends of Wells Cathedral was founded in 1933 with the aim of
bringing together a body of people who love the Cathedral and who
wanted to ensure its fabric was preserved and support its work.
Eighty years later, there are now over 3,000 Friends from all over the
world.
Friends Day this year is on Saturday 6th June and Friends from far
and near will be welcomed to the Cathedral. The day will begin with the AGM at 11:15am
followed by lunch, tours and talks, tea and a Solemn Eucharist at 5:15pm.
While our Friends Day is a chance for our existing group to get together, an invitation is also
extended to new Friends who would like to join us to learn more about what we do and how to
support the Cathedral. We look forward to seeing you on 6th June.
Kenneth Barnes
Kenneth Barnes served as Secretary to the Friends and was made a Vice-President, an
appointment which is made on the basis of outstanding service to the Friends. He lived here in
Wells until a few years ago when he moved closer to family. Kenneth died peacefully on
Sunday 19th April.
Somerset Schools Dance Festival on Cathedral Green
On Saturday 13th June 2015, more than 2,000 primary school
children will come together on our Cathedral Green to dance the
day away as part of the annual Somerset Schools' Folk Dance
Festival.
The Dance Festival is a well-established event in a unique
environment. As well as being a splendid and very special occasion, the dancing enables our
local schools to address aspects of the PE curriculum in addition to providing a varied social
experience for the children as part of the broader curriculum.
The Dance Festival will start at 2.00pm with a procession through Wells High Street onto the
Cathedral Green where the dancing will begin at 2.30pm and finish at approximately 4.30pm.
Service information and music list
Our Service Information and Music List for the month of June is available to view on our
website.
Wells Cathedral Library and opening times
Our Cathedral Library was built in the mid-fifteenth century
over the East Cloister. It houses the book collection of the
Chapter in two areas: the Chained Library and the Reading
Room.
Visitors are welcome throughout opening times, however
readers requiring a quiet study environment will be given
priority. The Chained Library can be viewed by the public from
the Reading Room, and provides opportunities for enchanting photographs.
Opening times are being amended and will mean that Saturdays will now be for booked tours
only. Please email visits@wellscathedral.uk.net to arrange a tour of the Chained Library guided
by the Cathedral Librarian; we appreciate two weeks’ notice. Booked tours are also possible on
other days of the week.
The Reading Room is open Mondays to Fridays 11.00-13.00 and 14.00-16.00 until 30th
October 2015.
More details of our Library Tours can be found on our website.
Cathedral Library book of the month for June
Our book of the month for June is The Anatomy of Humane Bodies
Epitomized by Thomas Gibson (1682).
The book is principally a collation of the writings of 27 other
anatomists taken from 33 publications which Gibson
acknowledges.
More details on our website.
In our thoughts : Amnesty Victim of Injustice
Amnesty Victim of Injustice for June – Mexico
Claudia Media Tamatiz woke at 3am on 7 August 2012 to find marines had broken into her
home in Veracruz City. This mother of three was blindfolded and taken to a naval base where
she was severely tortured. She was accused of being a member of a violent criminal gang,
which she denies. Claudia was pressured into signing a statement she was not allowed to read.
In court she retracted her statement and described the abuse she suffered. All but one of the
charges against her were dropped and she was released on bail. To date no specialist medical
and psychological assessment has been carried out, as required by the UN guidelines for
investigating torture, and no one has been held to account for Claudia's torture.
Calendar of Events June 2015
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Calendar of Events June 2015
5.15 pm Solemn Eucharist for the Visit of the Blessed Virgin Mary to
Elizabeth (transferred)
6.15 pm Taste and See in the Chapter Room
12.25 pm Holy Communion
9.30 am Holy Communion
5.15 pm Solemn Evensong
5.15 pm Solemn Eucharist for the Day of Thanksgiving for the Institution of
Holy Communion (Corpus Christi)
Friends of Wells Cathedral Day
5.15 pm Solemn Eucharist
11.30 am The Big Lunch on the Cathedral Green
4.30 pm Organ Recital: Messiaen Meditation (III) Messe de la Pentecôte
(Matthew Owens)
12.25 pm Holy Communion
9.30 am Holy Communion
3.30 pm Evensong (Broadcast live on BBC Radio 3 – please be seated by
3.15pm)
1.05 pm Lunchtime Organ Recital: Jonathan Vaughn (Wells Cathedral)
5.15 pm Solemn Evensong for Barnabas the Apostle
1.05 pm Lunchtime Concert: Richard Lennox (Organist)
Somerset Schools Dance Festival on the Cathedral Green
12 noon Eucharist with Healing
Simon Eeles Pottery Exhibition in the South Cloister until 28 June
12.25 pm Holy Communion
Leavers Day
9.30 am Holy Communion (Vicars’ Close Chapel)
7.30 pm Summer Organ Festival: Matthew Owens (Wells Cathedral)
Leavers Day
11.30 am Mothers Union Prayers (Bishop’s Palace Chapel)
Leavers Day
5.15 pm Evening Prayer said
7.00 pm Concert: Wells Cathedral School Wind Ensemble
Leavers Day
Leavers Day
12.25 pm Holy Communion (Vicars’ Close Chapel)
5.15 pm Solemn Evensong
Leavers Day
9.30 am Holy Communion (Vicars’ Close Chapel)
5.15 pm Solemn Eucharist for the Birth of John the Baptist
1.05 pm Lunchtime Concert: Theodora Poole (Pianist)
1.05 pm Lunchtime Concert: Wells Cathedral School String Ensemble
5.15 pm Diocesan Choral Festival
5.15 pm Solemn Evensong for Peter and Paul, Apostles
12.25 pm Holy Communion
7.00 pm Celebration of Song (Multi Academy Trust Service)