Helter skelter invites people to take a different view at Norwich Cathedral
Melanie May | 13 August 2019 | News
Norwich Cathedral is offering rides on a helter skelter as part of its Seeing it Differently project this summer.
For £2, visitors to the cathedral can slide down the 55-foot nave installation, gaining usually unavailable views of the cathedral and its medieval roof bosses.
Seeing it Differently runs for 11 days this month until 18 August and also includes a blind trust trail in the cloisters, a labyrinth and a 30-minute Walking Salvation tour. It aims to help people not only see the cathedral differently, but to also open up conversations about faith.
The cathedral’s Canon for Mission and Pastoral Care Andy Bryant came up with the idea for the project, with the helter skelter inspired by a visit by to the Sistine Chapel.
Revd Canon Bryant said:
“Amid the regular pattern of our daily worship, we are delighted to offer our visitors a unique experience with the Seeing It Differently project.
“The helter skelter is an opportunity for some holiday fun but we also hope it will help our visitors get closer to our wonderful medieval roof bosses, which are one of the true gems of the Cathedral and our fine city.
“Along with experiencing all the other Seeing It Differently installations, we hope that climbing 40ft above the Nave’s floor on the helter skelter will help people gain a new perspective on this ancient building and also appreciate the importance of seeing things differently; this building, ourselves and our faith.”
The helter skelter belongs to Irvin Leisure. A team of four people spent more than 19 hours installing the ride, which is made up of more than 1,000 parts held together by about 500 nuts and bolts and decorated in just over 2,000 lights.
Elsewhere this summer, in Rochester, Kent, people can play a free round of adventure golf in the cathedral’s nave. The course has been designed to encourage young people to learn more about the engineering behind bridges with each hole accompanied by a model of a different type of bridge including the original Roman bridge at Rochester, and the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge at Dartford.
Photos: Bill Smith/Norwich Cathedral
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About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.