The bell chamber of Inspire Saint James Clerkenwell is situated above the clock chamber.
Seven of the bells were recast by Thomas Mears from six bells from the old church. The eighth apparently came from St Mary’s, Islington. The first peal was rung in September 1791, well ahead of the consecration of the current church building. The bells were recast again and rehung in 1928–29.
In the nineteenth century they rang out for church services and to mark parish rejoicing, such as the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846, and, for example, on Shrove Tuesday, ‘the pancake bell’.
In the central lobby below the tower is a ‘peal board’ recording the feat of eight bellringers who, in 1800, rang a complete peal with 5,040 changes in three hours fifteen minutes. The reaction of neighbours is not recorded. The board is in an ornate wooden frame, probably a later addition. The campanologist George Morris managed to ring all eight bells at once on his own – as shown by the engraving published in 1863.
The bells are rung on the second Sunday of each month and on special occasions. They are rung after the 11am service for half an hour. They usually start between 12:15pm–12:30pm.
