St Aidan’s Bamburgh is a large and imposing building with a remarkable history.  The land for the  church was given to St Aidan in the year 635 by King Oswald, who had reclaimed his father’s kingdom from his uncle, Edwin, and there has been a continuous history of Christian worship on this spot since that date.  The oldest parts of the building date back to the 11th century; notable families connected to St Aidan’s include the Forsters of Bamburgh Castle and the Sharp family, including Reverend John Sharp, Archdeacon of Lindisfarne who was an early opponent of slavery in the late 18th century, while the Victorian heroine Grace Darling is buried in the churchyard.  Her memorial,  visible from the sea and frequently visited, is a prominent landmark.

A major project to make the Anglo-Saxon history of the church more accessible was completed in 2019, known as Accessing Aidan. Between 1998-2007, 110 Anglo-Saxon skeletons were excavated from a burial ground near Bamburgh Castle and after extensive research have been re-buried in the inner crypt at St Aidan’s in ossuary boxes ( zinc boxes that are designed to hold a disarticulated skeleton). An interactive digital ossuary has been developed and can be accessed online ( www.bamburghbones.org) or within the church,  along with a static display in the church and a short explanatory video in the crypt.  Core opening hours are from 10am to 4pm every day, with longer opening hours in summer

St Aidans has an ancient history but is a living place of worship, welcoming visitors to services  all year round.  It has a particular emphasis on a ministry of hospitality, and the core congregation and local community host a number of events every year as well as the usual after church coffee from a newly installed ‘kitchen in a cupboard’.