Patronal Festival Report - St Botolph's, Swyncombe

St Botolph’s, Swyncombe
Patron saint: St Botolph
Festival date: 22 June 2025

St Botolph’s marked its Patronal Festival with a Festal Choral Evensong, replacing the usual morning Eucharist and drawing over sixty people to this Ridgeway pilgrimage church. The grant covered music costs and the fee for festival organist Glynne Stackhouse, whose new Magnificat and Nunc dimittis (written specially for the service) received their première, sung by the long-established four-part parish choir.

The service, held in the soft evening light and surrounded by home-grown flowers, attracted regular worshippers, friends of the church and visitors, and concluded with a lively party in the churchyard. The strong turnout and enthusiasm for sung worship have encouraged the PCC to plan further Evensongs, including another Patronal Festival in 2026 and continued choral services alongside their popular Snowdrop-season Evensong.