Thetownend.com

So sad to see. I've been there as well, stunning building.

Sad seeing the spire go. Lots of history going up in flames.

Surprised this sort of stuff doesn't happen more often, to be honest.

man that is gutting (pun not intended)

Very sad.

Trump tweeting about it and tweeting shite as per normal

A few French Gothic gargoyles get singed and everyone gets the hump.

Is it a catholic church?

Yes, so despite the fire, God will still be in the House as far as the church going minority in the secular Republic are concerned.

Did Quasimodo get out?

Yes but he's got the right hump

That's a bit like asking if Buckingham Palace has anything to do with the Queen.   :D

After St Peter's in Rome, it's difficult to think of a better known Catholic place of worship than Notre Dame.

Holy Rood Church in Groundwell Road  :hmmm:   very busy these days.   3 separate masses on a Sunday morning.

Used to see nuns with whimples at the little attached Convent.... but you don't seem to these days.  Is that because there aren't so many or they don't wear them?

Too soon?

(https://scontent-lhr3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/57191741_2457053854339603_4902141084559212544_n.jpg?_nc_cat=1&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr3-1.xx&oh=8e2b532aa85d964b5a60aed2ab8e69de&oe=5D2FD05F)

I know its a bit inappropriate being so soon after but it did make me laugh.

(https://i.postimg.cc/Y0kcW9X4/57442634-10212999060282295-4693132561298227200-n.jpg)

 Old Sarum used to have a cathedral...

 (https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/siteassets/home/visit/places-to-visit/old-sarum/things-to-see-and-do/serpentine/sarum-things-3.jpg?w=550&h=350&mode=crop&scale=both&cache=always&quality=60&anchor=&WebsiteVersion=20190215)

It was dismantled and the stone recycled in the present site.... I daresay Notre Dame will be rebuilt.

Even better if it kick started a revival of Gothic architecture.

Interesting piece on the radio this morning.  Do you go for a precise replica of what stood there 24 hrs ago, or for something sympathetic to that with a 21st century twist?

I must admit to being ambivalent about Gothic revival.... on the one hand I get that it proabbly makes more sense than something modern, but does leave me a bit cold, in terms of feeling.

Such an example would be East Kennet church, which I visited recently.... the local squire in Victorian times paid for a complete rebuild in the Gothic style, and it looks fine, but you do lose the unique sense of historic continuity that is still to be found in many churches, which retain original features, even if out of necessity they've had some restoration.

(https://s3.britishlistedbuildings.co.uk/lbimg/101/286/148/101286148-122270-800.jpg)

I remember visiting another Notre Dame rebuild in St Lo, Normandy.... it was one of those places that was so bombed to buggery in the War, that at first it was thought best to leave it as a ruin, like Oradour sur Glane, however it was rebuilt.

Lourdes, and the Vatican probably the only two.

Like in Chesterfield?

I didn't realise there were so many catholics on here.

I've got to be honest, if you'd shown me a picture of Notre Dame before this happened I'd not have known what it was or where it was. If you'd told me what it was I still wouldn't have been able to tell you where it was. Looks to be a very nice building, but I'm registering a zero on the fucks given scale.

Here's the religious make of Swindon at the last census....

Population by Census 2011
Buddhist 1209 0.6%
Christian 120287 57.5%
Hindu  2597 1.2%
Jewish 151 0.1%
Muslim 3538 1.7%
Sikh  1228 0.6%
Other  1061 0.5%
No Religion  64780 31.0%

As you can see just over 1 in every 2 Swindonians considers themselves Christian, of the various factions, Catholics would certainly represent a sizeable chunk... it probably shouldn't be a surprise then that there'll be a few on a Town forum, despite many not being Swindon residents, but perhaps had a connection at some point.

Thing is that Notre Dame was heavily restored/reconstructed in the 19th century by Viollet-le-Duc, so despite what is being reported, it already represents something of a facsimile of styles and periods, for instance the spire that collapsed was actually designed and built in the 19th century by Viollet-le-Duc! 

When I worked at  a certain Council in north Cumbria in the early 2000's, it coincided with the census from 2001 being published, this showed that in a population of around 95,000 people there was 1 person who noted their religion as Hindu!

I am an architectural historian by training (and thus know a fair bit about ND and have visited although we didn't go in) but I have to say that ecclesiastical architecture leaves me comparatively cold, I must confess that the fire(s) at Glasgow School of Art affected me much more than  this...

There are about 4 million Catholics UK-wide, so you'd expect something like 6%.  Maybe slightly more in a town like Swindon where there was a higher than average Irish, Italian & Polish influx after World War 2.  (I don't have figures or anything to support that.  Just an observation.)

It would be interesting to compare those stats above with similar for Reading or Bristol.  I suspect that, for a town of its size, representation for some of those religious groups is quite low in Swindon.  The Muslim figure, in particular, looks very low.  Are there really only around 3,000 Muslims in the town?

Did i hear Mother Theresa say we are contributing funds to the rebuild?

If so, why?

Cos we are all a little French. Sacré bleu.

I'd like to see it rebuilt. There are other priorities to deal with first though, such as hungry kids etc. How much aid was given to the people of Grenfell?

Yeah but Grenfell didn't have stained glass windows.....

I think she has offered 'UK expertise' not hard cash...

Is that before or after 31st October?  :hmmm:

Bullshit  :)

Was there this much fuss when Windsor Castle caught fire?

York Minster too.

I think that the difference is that Notre Dame is globally significant in a way that no place of worship is in this country.  Even St Paul's & Westminster Abbey don't resonate in quite the same way.

For what it's worth, I was a nipper in 1984 when York Minster burned down and I remember it vividly.  Blue Peter talked about little else for months.

From recollection yes!

There was the Blue Peter garden too.

There are only 3 mosques, which may well be catering for say Sunni and Shia, and perhaps Bangla v Pakistani.

I worked on the 2001 census, and one thing very evident, was a great reluctance of some ethnic communities to get involved, however when the reasons were explained, and how the data collected would be used to everybody's benefit, then it was usually OK. 

 Nevertheless the feedback from 2001 showed that there might be about 1 mill people in the UK, living outside the mainstream bureaucracy.

I would like to think that the 2021 census, if it happens, would show a majority for no religion.

A lot, but then lots of it was trousered by shitbags.

Windsor Castle had a lot of exposure, I vividly remember that one.  You could well imagine Big Ben in the UK getting global news teams interested although a slow motion tumbling of a stone at Stonehenge would probably warrant greater global coverage.

If that happened I am sure that some would be calling for a rerun of the census, even in 2024.