St Mary is the first Suffolk church that most visitors see. It has also been ill-served by one of the least sympathetic Victorian restorations in the county, of which more in a moment.

But first, that flushwork. A half mile away to the south stands the church of St Mary, Dedham, a similarly spectacular affair, with flint flushwork decorating the tower and clerestory. The obvious rivalry between the two is heightened somewhat by the fact that Dedham is in Essex, on the opposite bank of the Stour (and therefore beyond the scope of this site).

It is said that the church at East Bergholt tried to outdo both of them, leading to the consequent collapse of its tower. In fact, the tower at Bergholt was never built; the Reformation happened first.

The north porch opening onto the road, the grand north aisle and clerestory, the tower that's been captured by football supporters...

The end of the inscription. Note the use of the Ave maria symbol for the first M of the date.

The date can be seen in the photo above. Other letters scattered here and there seem random, and meaningless; Mortlock thought them connected with a breviary ritual, and unique in England.

And so, we step inside, our breath held in anticipation of the sort of interior we've come to expect from similarly spectacular exteriors at Eye and Stoke by Nayland. But, oh dear. This church has been wholly Victorianised inside, and not at all well. It has been done over in that lukewarm, middlebrow ritualist fashion which is bad enough in a small building, but wince-inducing on such a large scale.

The ugly font, with its meaningless symbols and poor reliefs (which someone has done a Dowsing on) is a good match for the witless off-the-peg glass in the clerestory. What can they have been thinking of? The marble chancel arch and pulpit look as if they were designed specifically for some inner-London Anglo-catholic shrine, and then at the last moment installed here instead.

The 1890s international style at Stratford. Sort of Euro-camp, then.

To be honest, its all a bit choice. But, like so many Suffolk churches, this one was in a very poor condition by the 19th century, and something had to be done. In general, the earlier in the century restorations were carried out, the more attention they paid to vernacular styles and local needs.

But not here, for you could as easily be standing in a church in London, or Paris, or Calcutta. Or even Essex. Perhaps, if the exterior was not so spectacular, it would not matter so much.