Wells Cathedral is one of the great buildings of medieval England. Construction began in 1175 and the west facade — completed around 1240 — remains the most spectacular part: a vast stone screen carrying nearly 300 carved figures, kings, saints, angels, and biblical scenes arranged in rows from ground to gable. Many statues still carry traces of original paint.
Inside, the nave opens with an almost surprising lightness for a Gothic church of this age. The double-aisled choir and the Lady Chapel beyond it are richly detailed, but the focal point for most visitors is the crossing: here stand the great scissor arches, inserted in the 14th century when the tower began to subside. They look like an abstract sculpture — two interlocking arches forming a figure-eight — and they save the building to this day.
Don't miss the medieval astronomical clock in the north transept, dating to around 1390 and one of the oldest working clocks in the world. Every quarter hour, jousting knights circle the clock face while a figure called Jack Blandifer kicks the bells. The cathedral also holds a remarkable chapter house, reached by a worn flight of stairs, with a fan of stone ribs meeting at a central column.
Admission is charged, though worshippers attending services enter free. The cathedral is open daily; services are sung by the cathedral choir on most weekday afternoons and weekend mornings.