A personal guided tour of the Chapel of St Peter and St Paul in Greenwich with Michael Palin OBE, tea and cake at a top London restaurant with Bill Bryson OBE, and joining TV historian and author Bettany Hughes OBE on location are just some of the ‘money-can’t-buy’ lots going under the hammer in the National Churches Trust’s new ‘Save our Churches’ online auction, raising funds to help pay for urgent repairs to the nation’s churches. 
Other items include exclusive behind the scenes tours of York Minster, Lincoln Cathedral and St Paul’s Cathedral.
Bidding is now open and runs until midday on Friday 22 November 2019.
Full details, including how to place bids, can be found at at www.nationalchurchestrust.org/auction.
Claire Walker, Chief Executive of the National Churches Trust said: “I’m delighted that Bill Bryson, Michael Palin and Bettany Hughes are amongst those supporting our work of restoring and revitalising our nation’s churches by giving their time so generously for our ‘Save our Churches’ online auction.
“Churches and chapels are some of the UK’s most important historic buildings but many are under threat from leaking roofs, crumbling stonework and rotting timbers.
“Our ‘Save our Churches’ online auction, open to everyone, will help raise much needed funds to keep church buildings open and looking beautiful.”
Latest figures from Historic England, published in October, show that there are 913 places of worship on the 2019 ‘Heritage at Risk’ register, up from 911 in 2018.
Last year, National Churches Trust grants helped to remove 23 churches from the ‘Heritage at Risk’ register.
The National Churches Trust is the charity supporting places of worship of historic, architectural and community value used by Christian denominations throughout the UK.
In 2018 it provided grants to support 202 repair and maintenance projects at churches and chapels in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.