Church bells near Warminster to ring for the first time in 70 years

A church in a lost but not forgotten village near Warminster will be ringing their bells for the first time in almost 70 years on Christmas Day.

The village of Imber will hear bells on Christmas Day after years of silence to mark the festive day.

In 1942 villagers were forced to leave the village and never return after the military took over the area. The village has now since been used by the army. 

The abandoned village hold events only under permission of the army. 

This year, Imber will be seeing many events including open days over the Christmas period including a carol concert Saturday, 22, December 2012 which begins at 2:30pm at St Giles. 

New bells have been installed in the church and will be rung for the first time by local bell ringer Jenny Hancox whose birthday falls on 25 December. 

The old bells were taken out of the church in the 1950s and distributed to other churches. 

After the evacuation of residents in Imber in 1943, the bells were never rung again.

£3,000 has been spent on the upkeep of the church over the last eight years; however it may not come into permanent use.

For more information visit the website here.