Press Room

News is rippling across London like the plangent reverberations of a well-tolled bell: It has been announced that the American property developers who purchased the historic Whitechapel Bell Foundry have abandoned their plan to turn the site of the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain into a boutique hotel. The building is now back on the market.

It’s worth taking a moment to remember how we got here. The famed bell foundry was shuttered in 2017, caving under the pressure of less demand and the apathetic indulgence of the then-owners.

The National Bell Festival is honored to participate in the National Remembrance for Fallen Firefighters, the official national tribute to all firefighters who made the ultimate sacrifice responding to their last alarm. In the annual Bells Across America for Fallen Firefighters ringing event, bells will toll in solemn tribute to those men and women who died in the line of duty. 

Just off the Town Green at the heart of historic North Haven, Connecticut, a mere 8 miles from storied Yale University, the red brick façade of St. John’s Episcopal Church rises into a white wood-paneled steeple. Within, a solitary bell hangs aloft, bearing the inscription:

GEORGE H. HOLBROOK, EAST MEDWAY, MASS.

Five miles northeast of Topeka, Kansas, in the village of Grantville, stands a proud church with a heritage as old as the state itself. The Grantville United Methodist Church has served the community with spirit and grace since 1855, six years before Kansas became the 34th state in the Union.

The countdown is on! The National Bell Festival returns this New Year’s Day with an incredible lineup of events and experiences for the whole family – all free, all open to everyone, and all to ring in the New Year.

As an extension of the friendship between Tibet and D.C., the National Bell Festival is honored to gift His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama a cast bronze bell based on traditional temple bell profiles from the Tibetan imperial period. It will ring for the first time this New Year’s Day in a special blessing ceremony with Tibetan Buddhist monks.

Two months ago, ground was broken on a new structure to house the 200-year-old Peace Bell at The Carter Center, a non-profit organization in Atlanta founded on the values of former U.S. President Jimmy Carter. 

Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, the longest-reigning monarch in British history, has died. She was 96 years old. Buckingham Palace confirmed the Queen passed peacefully while in residence at Balmoral Castle this afternoon.

In solemn remembrance, bells will ring out across the United Kingdom and the world. Operation London Bridge, the collected protocols set in motion at the Royal death, details the role bell ringing will play during these days of mourning. It has been formulated in consultation with the Royal Household and Lambeth Palace. 

As the thundering of bells rings in the New Year, the 2023 National Bell Festival will highlight the rich bell ringing traditions and bell making heritage of the United Kingdom. Bells have rung across the UK, our inaugural spotlight country, for over 1,500 years. Indeed, the Church of England provides every church with at least one bell to ring the people to service. From single bells in sleepy hamlets to the majestic rings of peal bells at magnificent cathedrals, the sound of bells ringing is deeply rooted in British culture – and within earshot of almost every home in Britain.

The National Bell Festival has tapped D.C.-based muralist and creative powerhouse Keyonna Jones to serve as the 2023 Official Festival Artist for the fourth annual festival on New Year’s Day.

This Labor Day, the National Bell Festival invites bells across the nation to ring out in support of the countless women who worked on the home front during World War II. Collectively known as Rosies (from the Rosie the Riveter cultural icon), these women worked in factories, farms, shipyards, and more with one singular and united focus: to support, shorten, and win the war.