Bell ringing

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Last weekend at the Morpeth Gathering I got to try bell ringing. It was actually a love surprise as whilst I knew there were bells in the clock tower, I had initially thought it would just be a tour of the clock tower itself. Instead after waiting in the rain a lovely lady told us the history of the tower. It is the oldest civic bell tower in the uk, and one of only 6 civic (non church) bell towers in the country. The tower itself dates from the early seventeenth century, although the bells only date back to 1706. Apparently there was some political corruption involved, as they were a payment for electing someone as a mp. Hmm some things never change Anyway after the talk we got to go upstairs and try the bells (in a safe position) which was harder than it looks, but good fun.