Paul Adlington, business development manager for Epwin Window Systems, joined a team of bell ringers at St Mary’s Church in Astbury, Cheshire, as part of the ‘ring for the king’ initiative to celebrate the coronation. The ringing session lasted an hour and a half on 6 May 2023.
“It was an honour to take part in the historic coronation celebrations at my local church,” said Paul. “I’ve been a campanologist – a bell ringer – for six months and this was a highlight for me.”
The ‘ring for the king’ initiative was organised by the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers. The initiative is said to have united churches all over the country in creating a national soundscape to mark the coronation.
“Church bells have rung out to celebrate special occasions and to signify special events for hundreds of years, so we were continuing a long tradition,” Paul added. At St Mary’s Church in Astbury, a team of 30 people rang the bells for an hour and a half from 11:15am while King Charles III was crowned at Westminster Abbey. The session was the culmination of three months of training and practice for the event.
Paul has been business development manager at Epwin Window Systems for seven years. He said: “There are a lot of similarities between business and bell ringing, because success depends on team work. You need to work hard as an individual but you also need to draw on the skills and expertise of the people around you.
“It was amazing to see everyone come together on 6 May 2023 to put the months of practice into action. It’s something I’ll always remember.”
