When I was a young chorister at St. Peter’s church, Staines, Middlesex,
I always felt that I was singing in a cathedral. I probably had not seen a
cathedral, certainly had not sung in one, but I had seen enough small
village churches to give me the impression that the dimensions and colour to
be found at St. Peter’s must be like a cathedral.
Many years later, I found myself in the choir of All Saints’ church, West
Dulwich, London. I felt at home in the building, despite its immense
loftiness, and saw distinct similarities between it and my much loved St.
Peter’s. The two churches have more than just architectural features in
common; they share an architect.
From this discovery came the desire to find out more, which led me and my
fellow researcher, the Rev. Selwyn Tillett, to many parts of England,
including Devon where I, coincidentally, was later to make my home for a
while. Most of the research was done during the mid to late eighties.
Laziness and another move, this time to the Shetland Islands, prevented any
further work, until I found myself fired again to share my enthusiasm for
this unsung architect’s mastery.
I am no expert on architecture, a fact that will be patently obvious to the
connoisseur. I am merely an observer of that which I find beautiful and
aesthetically pleasing, and its converse.
My thanks to Selwyn Tillett for the hours and hours of travelling and
researching he did with me, and his encouragement to get the project off the
ground. My thanks also to Rundle and Jean Fellowes-Prynne for their help in
supplying archive material, and to all the friends who have helped in so
many ways.
Finally, the late Gwen Fellowes-Prynne, the architect’s daughter-in-law, was
an inspiration and a wonderful source of anecdote and background
information. It is to her memory that my research is affectionately
dedicated.
