The Guild held its first Ringing Course at Eastleigh Technical College on Saturday, October 5, and it was attended by about 105 people of all ages and from all areas of the Guild. After enrolment, which began at 9.30, the Rev. Roger Keeley started the proceedings with a general talk covering a large and interesting range of topics; from the importance of a good style to the maintenance and tuning of bells and to the threats of libel action uttered by his Diocesan authorities over his recent stand on the sale of ancient bells at give-away prices.
After a break for coffee, the course was divided into six groups of varying abilities, five going to study change-ringing from Plain Hunt to Kent and Stedman in the classrooms and the other to ring rounds and call-changes at Bishopstoke. After lunch, prepared by the College staff, those who had been studying in the morning went to put their new-found knowledge into practice at Easton, Upham, Owslebury, Bishops Waltham and Twyford, while those who had been ringing in the morning had a short talk before going to Hursley for further ringing.
Derek Jackson gave a talk on the development of ringing and of its organisations, which completed the main part of the course. There were then two further optional lectures, one on the theory of ringing and the other on handbell ringing.
Although no doubt there is room for improvement, this course does seem to have benefited, at least to some degree, all those who attended.
The lecturers were: Nan Colley, Tom Chapman, Derek Jackson, Arthur Davis, Bill Perrins, Ken Croft, Tony Smith and Roger Keeley, some of whom had very little time in which to prepare as extra classes had to be laid on to cope with the unexpectedly (but encouragingly) large number of applications.
So many people have indicated their wish for another course that it would seem almost inevitable that there will be one, perhaps concentrating more on actual teaching and ringing and less on general matters of interest.
The Ringing World No. 3317, November 22, 1974, page 963