St Martins in Perth?

Question: What does the City of Perth have as a connection with Trafalgar Square in London? The answer is the surprising fact for the day. The bells which were hung and swung in St Martins-in-the-Fields Church in Trafalgar Square for over 400 years now reside in a purpose-built bell tower on the foreshore in Perth, just below the financial district.

The story of how that came about is a fascinating one. It is also a story of the struggle between historical purists, and bell-ringing fanatics. I would consider that most people would believe that the correct place for historical bells is in their historical home. However, that attitude would be to deny the alternate view which is that a church is a living building to be used, and that church bells are either a functional part of that, or a an instrument of music, and either way they should be functional. Not only that, but a landmark location such as that should have bells to make them proud. The fact was that the old bells could no longer do that, having been tuned and retuned over the years, and cracked and repaired, and were showing their age.

So then the question came as to what to do about it. One side of the argument said that the old bells should be melted down and cast into new bells. That prospect horrified some, and so an alternate plan was arrived at. The 12 old bells were removed and transported to Perth. In their place, 10 tonnes of copper and tin was exported from Western Australia and used to cast a new set of bells, this time 13. A set to the same spec as the old was recreated, and an additional one at the bottom end, weighing 1.5 tonnes all on its own, giving, apparently, a finer and more complete set than had existed previously.

Now the people of Perth, and visitors, have access to one of the largest, and quite possibly the loudest instruments in the world. They play them every day for a few hours, for only a low fee… I wonder what the locals think?