Chelmondiston is the village above, and is a busy, pleasant place. Its church is quite remarkable, though.

The post-modernist irony of St Andrew - not. (Photo by Alan Thurkettle).

Like many along this coast, it was derelict by the 19th century, and was rebuilt by E.B. Hakewill, a ponderous architect that I always imagine working with the tip of his tongue poking ever so slightly from the corner of his mouth. He was very fond of low, north aisles. He built them at nearby Brantham, Rushmere and Shottisham, and he built one here, too.

All well and good, then. However, one night in 1945, a V2 rocket took a particular fancy to Hakewill's work, and came in for a closer look. The little church was completely destroyed.

Being close to other villages, perhaps rebuilding was not a priority, and it was not until 1951 that Basil Hatcher was given the commission to provide a replacement. Did he design something in a jaunty Festival of Britain style? No, he did not. Later in the decade, his would be the most significant post-war Anglican church in Suffolk, Ipswich St Francis, but this is a simple (and cheap) essay in Suffolk Perpendicular.

A very nice church, I should think, for people who like that kind of church. (Photo by Alan Thurkettle).

Cautley was appalled; you can hear him, red-faced and blustering, when you read his words. This is a bit rich, considering he'd done the same thing at Ipswich St Augustine himself 15 years earlier.

But I rather like it. Stepping inside to a feel of the Fifties, you are confronted with a glorious array of propped kneelers, giving a sense of a faith community in possession.

St Andrew, Chelmondiston, is located in the village just off the B1456 Ipswich to Shotley road. I found it open.

Please note that the photographs on this entry are by Alan Thurkettle, and retain his copyright.