Page 15 - Phonebox Magazine May 2013

OMICHAEL PORTILLO VISITS OLNEY CHURCH
n one of his “Great British at St Peter and St Paul to film the Railway Journeys”, Michael choir rehearsing some of the hymns Portillo visited St Peter and that have made the church famous. St Paul’s Church in Olney In 1779 Curate John Newton and his
recently. The church and its great musical heritage are mentioned in George Bradshaw’s tourist handbook of 1863, which Michael Portillo is using in the BBC 2 series that explores how the railways influenced the social, economic and political history of Britain.
When Bradshaw wrote his guide, Olney had a railway service and a station, but these were closed in the 1960s. Both the old trackbed and the site where the station once stood have been obliterated by Midland Road and new residential development.
The BBC television crew, following the old Victorian guidebook, arrived
poet friend William Cowper together published “The Olney Hymns.” By 1836 there were 37 editions, and the hymns were enormously popular in both Britain and the United States. Among the best known that are still sung today are “Amazing Grace” and “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken.” Both old and young members of the choir were impressed by the television celebrity’s kindness and generosity as he talked with all and sundry about the church, its history and its music, signed autographs and agreed to have his photograph taken. The Olney visit will feature in the railway series early next year.
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Phonebox Magazine 15