Church of St Michael and All Angels

Norman church with detached bell-tower and Civil War scars

St Michael and All Angels is the parish church at the top of Church Lane, with origins in the 12th century and a separate eight-storey bell-tower across the churchyard. The combination is unusual: most English churches have their spires attached. The interior is unexpectedly large, with a long nave, a fine collection of medieval and Tudor tombs, and the rare survival of medieval misericords in the choir.

The tower is occasionally open for tower climbs in the summer — when it is, take the offer; the view from the top stretches to the Malvern Hills. Entry to the church itself is free; donations support the upkeep.

things to do sight church
A story
The detached spire is sixty metres tall and stands apart from the church on its own square base — a Herefordshire peculiarity shared with Pembridge and Yarpole. During the Civil War a Royalist troop took refuge in the church; a Parliamentarian musket-ball is still embedded in the door of the north chapel.

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