World's heaviest church bells return to Cumbria after eight year restoration

A Cumbrian church is celebrating the return of its four bells after eight years of restoration.

The bells at St Michael's Church in Brough had been taken away for £70,000 worth of repairs.

They were recast in 1880 but date back to the 1500s, and are a special asset to the community as they are the heaviest church bells in the world.

A special blessing ceremony took place on Sunday 30 July to mark the moment the bells rang once again.

Reverend Brendan Giblin said: "It is absolutely wonderful and it's an amazing achievement for this small community and it has been a real community effort to get these bells - which are the heaviest ring of four in the country, well in the whole world I believe - to get to hear them again.

At the ceremony today was Honorary Assistant Bishop James Bell. He said: "It's a huge pleasure for me to be here today because my grandfather farmed on a farm at Brough Sowerby just down the road, my mother walked to school at Kaber, which is also just down the road, and my uncle is buried in the churchyard so it's really very much part of my roots."

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