Blackburn Cathedral

Blackburn Cathedral, officially known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Mary the Virgin with Saint Paul, is a Church of England cathedral situated in Blackburn, Lancashire, England. The site on which the cathedral stands has been home to a parish church for over a thousand years, and the first stone church was built there in Norman times, though the building was completely rebuilt in the 19th century. In 1926, the church was raised to cathedral status with the creation of the Diocese of Blackburn leading to a major programme of enlargement and enrichment.

History and architecture

thumb|left|The west front of the cathedral

Medieval parish church of St Mary the Virgin

The site on which the present cathedral stands has been associated with Christian worship for many centuries. A settlement is listed at Blackburn in the Domesday Book and the foundations of a Norman stone church were discovered - and destroyed - as part of the 19th century rebuilding. Nevertheless, a much older foundation has been postulated. In his in 1347 work De Statu Blagborneshire, John Lindley, 5th Abbot of Whalley, claimed a foundation in the year 596 and this is still frequently cited.

19th century church

Despite the church's much older origins, the earliest extant fabric of the present building dates only to the late Georgian era. The medieval church of St Mary the Virgin, which had been despoiled by Parliamentarian troops during the English Civil War, was found to be in a state of disrepair by the turn of the 19th century. As a result, the decision was taken to demolish and rebuild. Between 1820 and 1826 an entirely new church was constructed by the architect John Palmer of Manchester. Palmer was a pioneer of the Gothic Revival, the style that would come to dominate British ecclesiastical architecture by the middle of the 19th century, and this specific interest is noted in the building's heritage listing. Palmer's design for the church was done in imitation of the Decorated Gothic style, with a west tower of three stages rising above the western portal, tall three-light windows to both aisles, a clerestory over the nave, and a complete set of battlements.

Cathedral status and initial expansion plans

The Diocese of Blackburn was founded in 1926 by the then Bishop of Manchester, William Temple. Temple recognised the need to ensure that the expanding cotton towns of north Lancashire were provided - and seen to be provided - with the dedicated pastoral care of a newly created bishop. This intent was underlined by the translation of the parish church in Blackburn into the cathedral seat of the new bishopric.

Following the decision to elevate the church to a cathedral, fundraising began with the aim of aggrandisement to reflect the building's new-found importance. In 1933 an extension scheme devised by the architect William Adam Forsyth was approved. Forsyth's plan was to retain Palmer's church, extending the building east with a large choir and transept arms in a modern Gothic style. The centerpiece of the design was to be a central tower rising above the new transept crossing.

Post-War expansion

thumb|left|Lantern tower and aluminium flèche

Plans for completing the cathedral remained uncertain until 1961, when Laurence King was appointed as architect. His brief was to shorten Forsyth's intended eastward extension and provide a more economical solution to the planned central tower. King was attached to Faith Craft, a specialist provider of ecclesiastical fixtures and furnishings that had been established by the Society of the Faith in 1916. At the time of his appointment, King was in the later stages of rebuilding the Church of St Mary-le-Bow in the City of London, which had been ruined during The Blitz. Both projects shared a brief to work within a constrained budget, to which King's response was to utilise modern construction materials and design. His solution at Blackburn was to replace Forsyth's crossing tower with an octagonal roof lantern constructed from reinforced concrete, topped by an aluminium flèche. The sanctuary would be bought forward and placed directly beneath the lantern, reducing the need to extend the building east to the extent that had been proposed by Forsyth.

Almost 50 years after the original expansion plan for the cathedral had begun, construction was finally declared complete in 1977. The consecration ceremony was held on 18 November that year in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra of Kent, marking the completion of a project that has transformed a 19th-century parish church into a modern cathedral.

In 2009 the flagpole that rises above the parapet of the western tower was replaced with one carved by Mark Bridges. It is topped with a finial in the shape of a bishop's mitre, painted and gilded in gold leaf with the Red Rose of Lancaster emblem. The majority of the funding came from a bequest by Harold Thornber, who had worked at the cathedral as a warden and archivist.

On 17 April 2014, the cathedral played host to the Royal Maundy service. In keeping with tradition, Queen Elizabeth II handed out Maundy money to 88 men and 88 women. It was the Queen's first visit to the cathedral.

In 2016, Cathedral Court - a 16-year, £36 million project to expand the cathedral grounds - was completed. This development included the first new ecclesiastical cloister to be built in the United Kingdom since the 16th century, providing the cathedral with new residences for clergy and staff, a library, a refectory, and administrative offices. The project also transformed the surrounding area into a public square featuring a new hotel, office space, and a transport interchange, linking the historic cathedral buildings to the modern town centre. Funded through a partnership between the cathedral, local government, and community donations, the expansion included the Temple Gallery, a glass corridor named in honour of Archbishop William Temple.

The cathedral continues to form an important part of the diocesan and town community. It is open to visitors and has a café in the crypt, as well as hosting numerous religious and secular events. In 2021, the crypt of the cathedral was used as a major public vaccination centre during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Internal fixtures and fittings

thumb|Christ the Worker sculpture by John Hayward

The cathedral is noted for its bright and spacious interior, largely unencumbered by the accretions of centuries of patronage that can be seen in many English cathedrals and churches. This was a deliberate conceit of architect Laurence King and the artist John Hayward; by 1926, Palmer's church had been embellished with many monuments, a large collection of stained glass, pews and other liturgical furniture, all of which were removed at the beginning of the enlargement, with only a small number of examples reinstated, mostly moved into the transepts.

For the sanctuary, Hayward designed the oak cathedra and choir stalls, the four gilded sculptures of winged seraphim in the pendentives, the large sculptural Corona in bronze and steel that hangs above the altar, and the Portland stone altar itself. Hayward was also responsible for the large fibreglass and aluminum sculpture of Christ the Worker that dominates the west wall of the nave. At its centre is the figure of the Risen Christ, arms outstretched and wearing a worker's scapular. Christ appears to be mounted in a mandorla that closely resembles a cotton loom, an intended allusion to Lancashire's textile manufacturing heritage.

Hunstone also designed the Gothic pulpit that stands nearby and the rood that hangs above the entrance to the Jesus Chapel. The pulpit, carved in oak, has figures of saints Peter, James, John the Evangelist, Mary, Andrew and John the Baptist. The painted rood is in four parts, with the crucified Jesus to the centre, flanked by Mary and John the Evangelist. Above is a carved architectural canopy. Its current configuration was determined by King and Hayward.

Dean and chapter

As of April 2026:

Dean — The Very Revd Peter Howell-Jones
Canon Missioner — James Lawrence
Canon Precentor — Jennifer Gaffin

Music

The organist and director of music is John Robinson and the organist in residence is John Hosking.

Choir

The cathedral choirs — Cathedral Choir of Boys, Girls and Men, Youth Choir - formally Young Peoples' Choir, Blackburn Chamber Choir, formally Renaissance Singers/the Bach Choir and St Paul’s Singers. On Sundays the parish communion is sung by the YPC and the Eucharist and Evensong by the cathedral choir.

Organ

thumb|View of Transept and Sanctuary, showing the organ

The organ for the new church was designed by John Gray and Frederick Davison. Its debut was on 28 February 1828, with a concert of works by Handel including extracts from Messiah, Israel in Egypt and his Occasional Overture, played by the new organist Joseph John Harris. This organ was replaced in the 1870s by an instrument designed by Aristide Cavaillé-Coll.

Gallery

file: Blackburn Cathedral.jpg|West tower

File: Blackburn Cathedral Sanctuary, Blackburn, Lancashire, UK - Diliff.jpg|Sanctuary

File: Blackburn Cathedral Nave.jpg|Nave, looking east

File:Blackburn Cathedral Nave 2, Blackburn, Lancashire, UK - Diliff.jpg|Nave, looking west

File: Blackburn Cathedral 05.JPG|Interior view of the lantern

File:Blackburn Cathedral 03.JPG|East end: Rood by Advent Hunstone, seen beyond the hanging corona by John Hayward

File:Blackburn Cathedral 16.JPG|The font

File:Blackburn Cathedral, north transept window - geograph.org.uk - 7895129.jpg|North transept window

File: Blackburn Cathedral, Burne-Jones window - geograph.org.uk - 7895126.jpg|The surviving Burne-Jones window

File: Misericord in Blackburn Cathedral - geograph.org.uk - 1357427.jpg|15th century misericord depicting the Garden of Eden

File: Blackburn Cathedral - Mark Jalland sculpture.jpg|The Healing of The Nations' sculpture by Mark Jalland

File:Blackburn Cathedral, Virgin and Child sculpture - geograph.org.uk - 7895131.jpg|Virgin and Child scuplture by Josefina de Vasconcellos

File:Blackburn Cathedral 27.JPG|One of fifteen paintings in a series by Penny Warden

File:Blackburn Cathedral, Jesus chapel - geograph.org.uk - 7895121.jpg|Jesus Chapel

File:Blackburn Cathedral, Standards of the East Lancashire Regiment - geograph.org.uk - 7895111.jpg|The Chapel of St Martin of Tours

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References

External links

Blackburn Cathedral Website