Beautiful church. St Peter's Church is a Church of England parish church located in the centre of Bournemouth, Dorset, England. It is a Grade I listed building classed as a 'major parish church', and was completed in 1879 to a design by George Edmund Street as the founding mother church of Bournemouth. The building incorporates work by some of the finest Gothic Revival architects and artists, including Street, George Frederick Bodley, Ninian Comper, Arthur Blomfield and Edward Burne-Jones, with stained glass and frescoes by Clayton and Bell. The chancel has been described as 'one of the richest Gothic Revival interiors in England'.[1] The 202-foot (62 m)-high spire is a landmark in Bournemouth's centre, where it is the Town Centre Parish Church, together with the churches of St Stephen and...
Read moreA very pretty building, both inside and outside, featuring the Shelley family crypt in the graveyard. Sadly, the inside has the depressingly familiar assortion of aggressively patronising posters and murals all over the place, known to any visitor to Anglican places of worship nowadays, especially ones of historic interest. I was especially offended to see a mural describing the Authorised Version of the Bible - still the official Bible of the C of E - as "colonial propaganda". This embarrassment at beauty is one of the reasons I left the Church, and on this occasion chose not to...
Read moreThis church is stunning, with beautifully detailed décor and a unique, peaceful atmosphere. Free to visit but donations welcome. I visited just as Mass was about to begin, so I didn’t feel it was appropriate to take any photos—but the interior is well worth seeing in person.
My main reason for visiting was to see Mary Shelley’s grave. It’s not immediately obvious, but if you head up the stairs in the graveyard, you’ll find it. Thanks to tips from other reviews, I had no trouble locating it.
If you’re in Bournemouth and enjoy a bit of literary history, I’d definitely recommend...
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