St Mary

Visitors to our grade II* listed church often enthuse about the wonderful colouring in our east windows. The colours are at their best in early sunshine during the Communion Service. Those of us who take it for granted should pause for a moment to think what a drab world it would be without the green of trees, the deep blue of sea or sky and the rich red of flowers or sunsets. Other treats that greet visitors are the impressive Frosterly marble font, the elaborately carved rood screen, and the William Hill organ.

The building was given to the village by John Gretton of Bladon this being a case of ‘local boy makes good’ as the original family home was a farm in Beach Lane in Stretton, at the point of the present Burton Bypass Flyover. John Gretton had always taken an interest in the upkeep of the original church and eventually there came a time when, asked about more repairs, he suggested a new church built with ‘nothing but the best’.

Some of the land was donated by the Marquis of Anglesey, who owned all the village at that time, but John Gretton chose the site himself and insisted that the building should be set exactly east-west, with no compromise as is often required on town sites. It was said at the time that he took a “deep interest” in the work, much of which was supervised by his son, John Gretton MP.

The building was designed by two eminent Victorian architects. Somers Clarke, Surveyor to St Paul’s Cathedral and (when he retired to Egypt due to ill health) John Thomas Micklethwaite, Surveyor to Westminster Abbey.

Within the churchyard, which is particularly attractive in the spring, are memorials to mark the site of the original parish church and to a police officer murdered in active service. A visit at dusk will be rewarded by the view of the church lit up by floodlighting sponsored by our local Parish Council.

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