Australian and New Zealand Association of Bellringers

VIC ANZAB Branch Practice

Looking down on the ringing room. Photo: Tim Hunt

Our vicANZAB Branch Practice at St Paul's Cathedral on the 19th of September 2026 was a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon of ringing, with a great turnout and some very good ringing across the three hours.

We had 20 ringers and one non-ringer, Tim, who kindly came along as our photographer, with eight of our ten towers represented. It was great to see such a good spread of the branch coming together, in addition to Richard, who joined us from the UK, and Sam from CCSL, Sydney.

There were also a couple of important firsts during the afternoon. Leanne made her first visit to another tower from the Geelong where she is learning, which is a great step in getting out and experiencing different bells. Margie also rang on twelve bells for the first time, which is always a memorable milestone!

The ringing itself was pleasingly consistent throughout the three-hour session. We spent plenty of time on rounds and call changes on eight, ten and twelve, with some Plain Hunt on seven, eight and nine. We also managed touches of Grandsire Triples, Plain Bob Triples and Grandsire Caters, giving us a good mix of ringing and plenty for everyone to get their teeth into.

Before the practice officially got underway, we also had the opportunity to ring the "Pretty Six" as a service touch at the end of the consecration of the Bishops' service. It was a lovely way to start the afternoon and certainly not a bad excuse to get some ringing in before the main practice!

There was also some handbell ringing taking place in the Young and Jacksons Tower during the afternoon, thanks to Sarah and those who got involved.

Most of the attendees. Photo: Tim Hunt

A special thank you goes to Paige Kranz, Tower Captain at St Paul's, and to the whole St Paul's Society of Bellringers for hosting us and making the Cathedral available for our Branch Practice. We very much appreciated their hospitality and the opportunity to ring at St Paul's.

Thank you also to the Very Revd Dr Andreas Lowe, Dean of Melbourne, who took the time to wish us well as he made his way to the consecration service. His kind words and well wishes were very much appreciated.

A branch practice doesn't happen by itself, and there are a few people who deserve particular thanks.

Inga was fantastic as Ringing Master. Sharing the job with me throughout the afternoon was a huge help and very much appreciated. Her ability to keep things moving while finding suitable ringing for everyone made my job considerably easier!

Deryn was, as usual, phenomenal. I'm still not entirely sure how she managed to be everywhere at once! When she wasn't ringing, she was helping learners, assisting other ringers and generally finding ways to help everyone improve. Her contribution throughout the afternoon was enormous.

A big thank you also to Sarah for organising the handbell ringing and for all the work behind the scenes in the lead-up to the practice. Her communications and efforts to make everyone feel welcome were greatly appreciated.

And of course, thank you to everyone who came along. Thanks to those who travelled from Geelong and Ballarat to join us. It's that willingness to travel, ring together and support each other that makes a branch practice worthwhile.

From my perspective as Branch Chairperson, I was really pleased with the afternoon. The ringing was of a high standard and remained consistent over the full three hours, which is a great indication of where we are as a branch. More importantly, we had experienced ringers helping newer ringers, people trying new things, and plenty of good-natured ringing and conversation along the way.

It was a great afternoon at the Cathedral, and I think we can all be pretty happy with how the branch is progressing.

Thanks everyone, and I look forward to seeing you all at the next one!

Will Postlethwaite