BELLRINGERS from across the country have visited Haddington to celebrate 25 years since the installation of the bells at St Mary’s Parish Church.

The Scottish Association of Change Ringers (SACR) raised £11,000 to keep the bells from Dunecht Estate, near Aberdeen.

The Haddington church was then selected as the new home for the bells, with the then Moderator of the General Assembly, the Right Rev John Cairns, dedicating the bells in the summer of 1999.

Haddington’s bellringers hosted this year’s SACR autumn meeting and the 25-year theme ran throughout the day, from decorated bell-shaped biscuits and numerical cakes to the service address after ringing.

The service address was from the Very Rev Dr John Cairns, who expressed his joy at coming back 25 years later, long into his retirement, to see a crowd of enthusiastic ringers making the most of them.

He acknowledged the craftsmanship and musicianship of bellringing and said: “It’s real craftsmen who made the bells in the foundry.

“It’s craftsmen who hung the bells.

“And it’s musicians like you who make them ring.

“You have come to celebrate your own art.”

Bellringers travelled from Dunkeld, Dunblane and Dundee; Inverness and Inveraray; Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow; and St Andrews and Stirling to join local bellringers from Haddington.

The morning was given over to an advanced practice of change ringing, with Ruth Marshall directing bands to attempt the day’s special methods (or patterns): Lessness Surprise Major and London Surprise Major.

A spokesperson for the event said: “Both were rung with success and for several ringers their first attempts in the methods.

“There were two sessions of general ringing in the afternoon and a wide repertoire of ringing sounded across the town.

“This was followed by a service in the church and a short business meeting to confirm new SACR members and for news updates.

“Hosting by the St Mary’s ringers included generous tea, coffee and cakes between ringing sessions, and a great supply of pie and mash for dinner, followed by ample dessert.

“Ringers still wanting more were treated to a pair of bell-themed quizzes: one based on musical associations and one based on word associations.

“Who knew that ABBA’s Mamma Mia references the ringing of a bell, or the bell-holding link between carrots and celery?

“The tea, coffee and baking raised over £160 for Médecins Sans Frontières in donations.

“SACR is very grateful to the Haddington Society of Change Ringers for tremendous work hosting the day, to John Cairns for leading the service, to Matt Edwards on the organ, and to Ruth Marshall for organising all the ringing.”