June marks the celebration of Central Church’s fiftieth anniversary
This June, the congregation of Torquay’s Central Church are celebrating the fiftieth birthday of their remarkable building. Construction of the church began in June of 1975, and saw three older buildings removed to make way for the new site, which became the place of worship for members of two denominations, Methodist and United Reformed, to come together as one congregation.
Of the sixty-five active churches in Torquay, Central Church’s history goes back as far as some of the oldest. The church is one of three different backgrounds: one of these, Union Street Methodist Church, was established in 1807, over two-hundred years ago. It was in 1971, though, that Central Church was founded, when Union Street Methodist Church, along with two others, united into one congregation.
Their new building is famous for its pierced screen wall façade, the top of which forms the shape of three crosses, representing the three congregations that united to create the church. This design is a point of controversy for many. Nikolaus Pevsner, author of the ‘Buildings of England’ series, called it “forceful but rather crude”. Its modern style separates it from the many older buildings used by other churches in Torquay.
Although Belgrave United Reformed Church was demolished to make way for the new building, three of its beautiful stained-glass windows were saved, and can now be seen inside Central Church. The older building that these windows come from suffered from structural scars caused by its restoration in the late 1940s, after it was damaged by a bomb blast during World War Two. This was why the congregation were inspired to build a more modern, comfortable church where they could hold worship.
Central Church remains an active part of the Torquay community and has several events planned for the coming weeks. On July 5th, the Torbay Police Community Choir and the Avon & Somerset Constabulary Choir will be performing there, and on July 25th a Q&A session with MP Steve Darling will be held inside. Central Church meets for worship every Sunday at 10:30am.