No, we’re not talking about tyrannical tower captains, caustic conductors or belligerent tenor ringers here, but the wide and wonderful variety of wildlife that ringers and steeple keepers share their bell towers with.
David Bagley fascinates host Cathy Booth with descriptions and anecdotes of both welcome and unwelcome species, and advises on how to either encourage them or get rid of them. No, it’s not just bats in the belfry, as insects, mammals and birds all seem to enjoy the atmosphere and make themselves at home.
As well as some fascinating facts, this podcast offers some great excuses for losing a quarter – just blame the distraction caused by that cheeky mouse, plague of ladybirds or rare sighting of an assassin beetle!
About David Bagley
David Bagley started ringing in 1977 at Malvern Link where he was taught by his father Geoff. At that time, the “Link” band was really strong and he was able to make good progress in a tower where ringing fairly advanced methods were the norm.
He has been developing ringing simulators since the early 1980s and now produce systems which allow a ring of bells to be connected to a PC for teaching purposes.
He lives with his wife Ruth and daughter Rachel in Tewkesbury. He organises the annual Tewkesbury Shield ringing competition at Tewkesbury Abbey. He also has a mini ring of 10 bells in his shed.
He became involved with the redundant church at Strensham in 1997, and recently led a project to rehang and restore the bells, and to augment them to eight.
