Westminster Cathedral Blogs: Carrying the Torch (Unofficially)

Palm Sunday, Westminster Cathedral, 2026 (photo my own)

Those of you who know me will know that I have carried on two sacred music-related blogs: 

• This one, created in 2020 for the main purpose of delivering news specifically about Westminster Cathedral Choir following the horrible mess that was the ill-fated attempt by the Archbishop of Westminster (then Cardinal Nichols) and the Cathedral Choir School 2019 to scale-back the pattern of choral liturgies sung by the Choir;
• The Acolyte's Tale (https://acolytestale.blogspot.com/), which was active during the years 2011 to 2019 (with a diverse and sizeable global readership) and which has resumed operation recently. Its focus has been on (mainly) liturgy and sacred music from the Catholic perspective, with a healthy dose of Choral Ecumenism (frequent visits to the Oxbridge colleges and the London and Provincial C of E Cathedrals, for instance). Much of its focus centred on the world-class Choirs (and liturgical sensibilities) of Westminster Cathedral and St. Mary's Cathedral, Sydney.

I was aware of two blogs that had previously been concerned with sharing news and anecdotes about the inner workings Westminster Cathedral:

• one by the late great Msgr Langham, a former Administrator (i.e. Dean) of Westminster Cathedral, called “Solomon, I have Surpassed Thee (address: westminstercathedral.blogspot.com) [active 2006-2008]; 
• its younger sibling, carried on briefly by Fr Tim Dean, Cathedral Chaplain, called "The years of our lives are like a tale that is told" (address: westminster-cathedral.blogspot.com – note the added hyphen) [active 2008-2009]

I am not aware of more recent blogs concerning Westminster Cathedral specifically, though of course nowadays news is disseminated via its social media (Instagram, X, Facebook, YouTube etc), for example:

• facebook.com/westminstercathedralchoir
• facebook.com/WestminsterCathedral
• facebook.com/wccslondon
• instagram.com/westminstercathedralchoir
• instagram.com/westminstercathedral
• instagram.com/wccslondon
• x.com/wcchoir
• x.com/WestminsterCath
• x.com/WCCSLondon
• youtube.com/@WestminsterCathedral

There is also the excellent Cathedral Magazine Oremus, downloadable here: https://westminstercathedral.org.uk/our-community/oremus/

As good as the above resources are, a blog is a jolly useful way of combining the best of both worlds, namely the ability to share multimedia (video, photos etc) while also allowing space for lengthier analyses of events and issues. That is, if people have the requisite attention span thses days (happily a safe assumption amongst my discerning readership!)

As this blog is a going concern, and is devoted already to the topic of Westminster Cathedral Choir specifically, it seems like the convenient and logical place from which to carry on the story of Westminster Cathedral.

The blog doesn’t really have a title. It is simply the blog of the Society for the Protection of Westminster Cathedral Choir. Bit of a mouthful, but has the much pithier address of spwcc.blogspot.com, and I think better to stick with this than changing it to be more similar to the addresses of the previous blogs (quite apart from which I do not dare suggest that mine will be half as good as those illustrious predecessors).

Other factors set this blog apart from its predecessors, too, in that they were:

• carried on by clerical insiders looking outwards, so to speak, and were therefore quasi-official, whereas this blog is very much unofficial, carried on by a benevolent, lay outsider looking in (with a hawk eye) – albeit as a regular worshipper at the Drome for over 10 years (and a lover and scrutiniser of its Choir for over 10 years prior to that) and someone who has had a chant book published by Solesmes;
• focused more widely, covering many aspects of the Cathedral’s workings and the activities of its personnel, whereas this blog will largely continue to focus more narrowly on the Choir / Cathedral liturgies, which is itself a vast subject (given the Choir's standing as the world's most important Catholic cathedral choir).

As with my other blog, content is added at my absolute, sole discretion, with credit given and information referenced where necessary. All opinions are my own and just that, opinions. However, I will try to minimise the giving of opinions, sticking instead to presenting interesting information, and posing questions that would seem to arise naturally from such information. The blog is entirely concerned with informing/educating, criticallly analysing, etc and has no connection with any commercial activity. 

I am sure that I have met many of you who will naturally be interested in reading this blog, and many others have probably seen me about the place without realising precisely who I am. Hello to all of you, and if it helps, your humble scribe looks thus: