This last week has been one of those times when I have felt more like a Producer or Director. With the proximity of Holy Week the focus of meetings and discussions has been on processions, fires, candles, displays and symbols and who does what , when and how. Add to this the fact that the Easter Sunday Mass will be televised live on BBC1 AT 10.00am with ‘Songs of Praise’ recorded the next day and it has all the makings of a busy and stressful mix. What do we do with all the scaffolding, extra lighting and cameras etc during the Good Friday and Vigil services? Yet all of this is so important so that we celebrate these Feasts, that are so central to our faith, with real meaning and reverence, faithful to the liturgical instructions and making the celebrations relevant to our time and place. No matter how well prepared we try to be I’m sure there will be alterations and challenges right up to the last minute. On top of this I have a meeting this week with a BBC radio producer regarding the live recording of an early morning Mass on Pentecost Sunday!
Last time the BBC were here I had a go on a motorised camera unit so I am hoping to have a decent spin around this time seeing how the Cathedral looks through the lens of a BBC camera. We have been using a digital camera to keep a careful record of the stages of the work taking place here at the Cathedral. For instance we could very quickly forget how the Crypt Chapel entrance used to look like now that the alterations and re-furbishment are almost complete there. Similarly the various stages of the construction of the lift have been recorded so that we can see what has been going on between the two buildings out of general view. It is hoped to have some form of display of these photos when the project nears completion.
In the meantime the work inside the Crypt Chapel continues with the race on to complete the re-wiring and re-lighting before Holy Week. After Easter the floor will be polished and we hope to be back using the chapel for weekday Mass by the end of April. In the rest of the Crypt the focus now is on the fitting out of new toilets and kitchen facilities along with lighting improvements throughout the building. Every week brings significant improvements to the building and one of the most telling improvements in the last few weeks has been the professional cleaning of the Crypt windows – Removing years of dust and corrosion has made a huge difference!
The half term week has been a busy week for visitors to the Cathedral – in fact since the beginning of the year there has been a marked increase in visitors not just here but throughout the city. I hope all of the young people of our Cathedral community have had a relaxing week especially the servers and choir. They will have a busy time over the next few weeks.
This last week has been one of those times when I have felt more like a Producer or Director. With the proximity of Holy Week the focus of meetings and discussions has been on processions, fires, candles, displays and symbols and who does what , when and how. Add to this the fact that the Easter Sunday Mass will be televised live on BBC1 AT 10.00am with ‘Songs of Praise’ recorded the next day and it has all the makings of a busy and stressful mix. What do we do with all the scaffolding, extra lighting and cameras etc during the Good Friday and Vigil services? Yet all of this is so important so that we celebrate these Feasts, that are so central to our faith, with real meaning and reverence, faithful to the liturgical instructions and making the celebrations relevant to our time and place. No matter how well prepared we try to be I’m sure there will be alterations and challenges right up to the last minute. On top of this I have a meeting this week with a BBC radio producer regarding the live recording of an early morning Mass on Pentecost Sunday!
In the meantime the work inside the Crypt Chapel continues with the race on to complete the re-wiring and re-lighting before Holy Week. After Easter the floor will be polished and we hope to be back using the chapel for weekday Mass by the end of April. In the rest of the Crypt the focus now is on the fitting out of new toilets and kitchen facilities along with lighting improvements throughout the building. Every week brings significant improvements to the building and one of the most telling improvements in the last few weeks has been the professional cleaning of the Crypt windows – Removing years of dust and corrosion has made a huge difference!