Churchgoers in Essex who have been without a vicar for 16 months have taken to YouTube to look for a replacement.
The parish’s two busy churches, St Andrew’s in Bicknacre and St Mary’s in Woodham Ferrers currently “borrow” retired clergy and vicars from neighbouring parishes.
They have made repeated attempts to recruit a new vicar since the Rev Mary Cottee retired in June 2011.
Now villagers have made a video appealing for suitable candidates – using a cardboard cut-out to show exactly where the new clergyman will fit in.
The video -featuring nearly the whole village – opens with one parishioner being told off for the director for making jokes about the graveyard being the “dead centre of the village”.
In his second take he says: “Here we are in St Mary’s churchyard. It’s a beautiful churchyard as you can see, but we have a grave situation – we have no vicar.” Continue reading
