Stained Glass Window Tour Friday – 20 Jun 2025

On what could be one of the hottest days of 2025, 22 of us were guided around four City of London churches by Alexandra Epps.

Alex is a registered London Tour Guide with a passion for stained glass and the history of the City. She had arranged for ‘whisper devices’ which meant we were all able to hear her without disturbing other visitors or the peace of the churches. Alex shared some of her favourite churches and gave us a fascinating insight into the windows, with some entertaining explanations.

For example, Saint Lawrence when asked to bring forth his riches brought the sick ailing and the elderly. It so angered his superiors that he was martyred by being roasted alive on a spit. Purported to have said, “turn me over, I am done on this side”, he became the patron saint both of chefs – and comedians.

Each church had remarkably different features reflected within the windows. St Vedast alias Foster had pictorials representing miracles performed by Saint Vedas in striking yellow/orange with thick black grid lines. Elsewhere, a more brightly gentle colouring depicted Saint Clotilde, the Saint for widows and wives with ill-tempered husbands.

The delightful St. Mary le Bow, of Bowbells fame, is a Wren church with an accessible tower and a nine foot metal dragon on top as a symbol of the City. Inside the church the glass windows were of brightly coloured mosaic designs.

We all managed to keep together on our winding tour, even when negotiating the dreaded Lime bikes parked in the narrow passageways!

Everyone enjoyed the visit, having started with a group coffee, we concluded by breaking off and all going our own away to the coolest spots we could find.