All material on this site is the property of Londonist Ltd. That Time The Bishop Of Southwark Went On A Drunken Rampage, 15 Charming Day Trips From London: May 2023, The Top 11 Exhibitions To See In London: May 2023, The Best Places To Find Bluebells In And Near London This Spring. He was throwing my one-year-old son's toys everywhere. Was it a vicious mugging, as the Bishop originally told his congregation? One condition which may be being considered is Transient Global Amnesia. It was Mervyn Stockwood, Bishop of Southwark from 1959-1980, who first cemented the image of the mashed mitre in the Anglican arena. This report, therefore, is based on only the complainant's account. "While a one-off occasion of drunkenness cannot amount to a habit, one occasion of public drunkenness may well amount to a failure to fashion a cleric's life according to the doctrine of Christ and, certainly, may amount to a failure to make himself a wholesome example and pattern to the flock of Christ or to make himself an example of righteous and godly living.". His many interests include theatre, cinema, reading and travel. 26 bishops of the Church of England sit in the House of Lords, which is the Second Chamber of the United Kingdom Parliament. He claimed that he is suffering from amnesia and is undergoing medical tests for a neurological condition. Over the years, churchgoers have got used to prelates who preach parables from the pulpit on the evils of drink, only to be snapped shortly afterwards, attending some civil function fully three cassocks to the wind. So profitable did this venture prove that the sex workers of Southwark came to be known as 'Winchester Geese'. View more posts. @ smithinamerica. Some hours later, the 66-year-old prelate, a regular on Radio 4's Thought For The Day, was found six miles away outside his home, the Bishop's House in Tooting Bec, South London, with a black eye, bloodied, a bump on his head and a number of personal items missing. The report in question was a preliminary report, intended merely to assess whether - if true - the allegations made by the complainant would be strong enough to justify proceeding further with the disciplinary process under the Clergy Discipline Measure. Theology has become more flexible, of course. Paul Sathaporn, the manager of the Suchard bar, said: "I and some passers-by asked him if he wanted an ambulance but he said no. Read our, {{#verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}} {{^verifyErrors}} {{message}} {{/verifyErrors}}. A report in today's Times [6th June 2007] is headlined 'Bishop was drunk after Christmas Party, leaked report says' (online version as at 12.35am; wording for other versions may differ). The police had turned a blind eye and taken no further action. Each email has a link to unsubscribe. Ordained Deacon. I said, 'Yes, he looked respectable and had on a smart black coat'.". Bishops of Southwark. He got up and staggered under the railway bridge, said Sathaporn. The cathedral's dean, the Very Rev Colin Slee, said last night: "This would be utterly out of character. Since mid-2003 the Bishop has represented the Church of England on the central committee of the World Council of Churches. The Rt Rev Tom Butler, the Bishop of Southwark, said that he had been robbed after arriving home with a bump to his head and without his briefcase, crucifix and mobile phone. It might well have been a personal plea. I remember nothing from the early time of the party until I got home. T he Bishop of Southwark, who hit the headlines over an alleged drunken episode, today announced he will resign next year. The service was of course, conducted by our friend, the Bishop of Southwark, Thomas Butler. Last month the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, said that no further action would be taken against the bishop under the Clergy Discipline Measure 2003, despite a 20-page report submitted privately from Judge Bursell this year, which stated that there was enough evidence to support allegations that Dr Butler had been drunk. Or a drunken misadventure which ended in a stranger's car, as others claim? Blade Runner vandal chopping Ulez cameras down breaks silence. Dr Butler has said he did not take his car that night because he had a busy day and the traffic was 'horrendous'. As the Guinness, spirits and wine freely flowed, he ended up more than a little animated. . Dr Butler acknowledged that he drank two glasses of red wine at the ambassadors reception, but was subsequently unable to recall if or what he drank after that though, it should be said, he was absolutely certain that he was not drunk. In the meantime, the Bishop was telling reporters: "I remember the reception. The Mercedes' alarm went off outside the Suchard bar near Southwark Cathedral. The site also included a malt store, coal cellar, furnace, boiler house, cooling room, cooperage, cleaning sheds, cask sheds, offices, stables and an export warehouse on the river Thames, which when demolished, revealed the remains of Roman warehouse that had been used to store beer! "Normally, at a reception, I will have a glass or two of wine. The Bishop of Southwark is facing a battle to keep his job after he was apparently found in a tired and emotional state in the back of a stranger's car after a Christmas party. The bishop reportedly staggered home from a function at the Irish embassy on Tuesday night, climbed into the back of a stranger's Mercedes, and started throwing an infant's toys out of the. Southwark Cathedral is just a tankards throw from where once stood the biggest beer plant in the world: the Anchor Brewery. Transfer from Auxiliary Bishop of the South West Area to Auxiliary Bishop of Kent. It was established in Shakespearean times, right next door to the playwrights famous Globe Theatre. Alan Craig, leader of the Christian People's Alliance group on Newham council in east London, said: "If it's true he was drunk he ought to resign. Episcopal Vicar of the South-West Area. In his report to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the top ecclesiastical lawyer, Judge Rupert Bursell, QC, ruled that there was "sufficient substance" to justify disciplinary proceedings against Dr Butler "in relation to the complaint of drunkenness". The Bishop of Southwark is facing a battle to keep his job after he was apparently found in a tired and emotional state in the back of a stranger's car after a Christmas party. The London Timeshttp://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article1890372.ece . On the night of his alleged drunkenness in 2006, the bishop returned home to Tooting Bec from a reception at the Irish embassy in Mayfair with a black eye but without his crucifix, briefcase and mobile phone. He can be forgiven, but he can't carry on as bishop. 17,029 pages were read in the last minute. He chaired the General Synod's Board of Mission from 1995 until 2001 and is now vice-chair Public Affairs of the Mission and Public Affairs Council. But it was his reportedly prodigious capacity for alcohol that raised eyebrows, with the Synod unsettled by such claims as the drunker he became, the sharper his memory. Tweets. Trinity House 4 Chapel Court Borough High Street London, SE1 1HW Tel: 020 7939 9400 Fax: 020 7939 9468 General e-mail: [email protected] Communications Tel: 07831 694021 In today's Britain, however . It was the account of the wedding of Cana, when the booze ran out and Jesus saved the day by turning the water into wine. By Matthew Beard THE INDEPENDENT December 11, 2006. "But there lies the difficulty. The Daily Mail has re-examined the evidence in an attempt to solve the mystery of the Bishop's missing hours. After shaking hands with the ambassador, he joined the mix of politicians, journalists, artists and literati filling the room. People are more polite about Hell. 020 7367 6727. No priests or other lay people complained formally over the incident. . Guests at the Christmas reception included the head of MI5, Dame Eliza Manningham-Buller; Sir Hugh Orde, the head of the Northern Ireland police service; and the former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble. Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. He said at the time: "It would have been entirely out of character for me to be drunk.". On Crucifix Lane, on the outskirts of Bermondsey, he clambered into the back of a parked car setting off its alarm. The Bishop of Southwark The Bishop of St Fiacre's "Churches still hold services, London still has its bishops, the Traitor Empress is still the head of the Church of England. Echoes of erstwhile merchant trading are redolent in the Hop Exchange building on Southwark Street and the LeMay Hop Factors headquarters on Borough High Street. In addition, umpteen barrels of Youngs beer had been delivered especially for the occasion by a dray pulled by four black shire horses. The Rt Rev Dr Tom Butler will step down from his post in March after turning 70, the statutory retirement age. Ghostly reminders of famous pubs are found in the alleyways off this thoroughfare: The Tabard, the inn from whence the pilgrims set forth in Chaucers Canterbury Tales; The Queens Head, the sale of which helped fund the establishment of Harvard University in America; and the aforementioned George, likely to have been frequented by William Shakespeare, and a section of which still stands. The Most Reverend John Wilson. You must be at least 18 years old to create an account, Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number, I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from Evening Standard. There was this story about me being in a car at London Bridge, which I can remember absolutely nothing about. I have also been conducting guided walks around the area since before the Bishops famed wanderings. He remembers nothing after leaving the Irish embassy and arriving home, but still believes he was mugged. A diplomatic incident occurred here in 1849 when the visiting brutal Austrian dictator General Haynau was attacked by employees. VirtueOnline is the Anglican Communion's largest Biblically Orthodox Online News Service, read by more than 4,000,000 readers in 170 countries each year. He said on Radio 4: "The injuries were compatible with being mugged and we all thought that's what had happened. The gospel reading was also thoughfully chosen. The finding of the report was that the complaint was sufficiently serious to justify further exploration under the Measure. The Archbishops of Canterbury and York and the Bishops . Ruth Gledhill. . I came home certainly with an injury and with a loss of property.". before two men pulled the occupant out and he fell on the pavement. "I have been going to receptions for 20 years," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme in his first broadcast interview. [12] He contacted the police claiming that he had been mugged. Homilies, Articles and Address. First published on: 27th April 2023. First, the undisputed facts: In December 2006, Butler, a noted churchman who regularly appeared on Radio 4's Thought for the Day in his role as bishop of the Anglican diocese of Southwark . That man was the Right Reverend Thomas Frederick Butler, the Bishop of Southwark, 1998 to 2010, and this is his story. On December 6th 2006, the 66-year-old prelate contacted the police to reveal that he had been attacked the previous evening by unknown assailants in a violent street robbery, in which hed suffered several injuries, a loss of memory, and a loss of several personal possessions including his briefcase, his mobile phone and his ceremonial crucifix. So it is reassuring that, in such times, one man was able to humanise our Anglican orders, to break with episcopal protocol, to reach out to the layman and bring Christianity to the commoner. A few days later, Mr Sumpter's wife allegedly discovered Mr Butler's briefcase in the car. Stockwood most famously made headlines when he appeared on a controversial 1979 TV chat show accusing the Monty Python team of blasphemy for their movie Life of Brian. Tel: 020 7939 9420 What happened in between has been the source of much conjecture, with the Bishop initially reporting to the police that he had been mugged somewhere between the Embassy and his home, but later stating that, in fact, he had absolutely no recollection of the period in question and may have experienced some sort of blackout. Sign up for exclusive newsletters, comment on stories, enter competitions and attend events. The main contribution of staff is to effectively provide a customer support service for parishes. CANON Jeffrey John, whose appointment as the Church of England's first openly homosexual bishop threatened a worldwide split among Anglicans, withdrew his acceptance of the post yesterday. English Archbishop John Wilson of Southwark and diocesan education authorities intervened to protect the school's integrity and insist that the event be dropped. Indeed, we enjoy plotting potential routes from Grosvenor Place to Bermondsey to commemorate the event, although ours tend to take in pubs on the route. Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in, Find your bookmarks in your Independent Premium section, under my profile. Andy Fenton, Richard Perkins and Loots Lambrechts were ordained in November 2005 at Christ Church, Surbiton, London, by Martin Morrison, a bishop of the Church of England in South Africa. A report in today's Times is headlined Bishop was drunk after Christmas Party, leaked report says (online version as at 12.35am; wording for other versions may differ). Bishop Tom denied the allegations surrounding the incident and said he would undergo further medical tests. We are sorry to hear of the bishop's injuries and wish him a speedy recovery.". Ever since medieval times, hops had been carted up the Old Kent Road to the London marketplace. If you find yourself in and around the bars of Borough as November slips into December, listen out for a seasonal call-and-response drinking toast peculiar to the area, in which folk declare that they are despite all appearances to the contrary the Bishop of Southwark. When Mr Sumpter enlisted the help of others to attempt to remove Dr Butler from his car, Butler became aggressive and arrogant, according to Mr Sumpter. Sign up for exclusive newsletters, comment on stories, enter competitions and attend events. Livestream Services and Messages. He fell over and banged his head on the pavement. The incident was described in Pete Browns 2012 book, Shakespeares Local. Its a type of mulled punch which contains port, red wine, citrus fruits, sugar, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, mace and nutmeg. [14] Known in the church as a strong disciplinarian, particularly when dealing with junior clergy caught under the influence of alcohol, Butler faced calls for his resignation from some quarters. At 9pm, the Bishop of Southwark left Grosvenor Square and, according to the evidence of his Oyster travel card, which registers individual journeys electronically, he set off across London on public transport, but he did not head straight home. The Daily Mail has re-examined the evidence in an attempt to solve the mystery of the Bishop's missing hours. [2] He was enthroned in Southwark Cathedral on 12 September 1998. Property developer Paul Sumpter, 39, was playing pool in the bar and ran out to see the hazard warning lights of his silver Mercedes A200 saloon flashing and the rear door open. Australia bans recreational vaping in major public health move, Ukraine army drive out Russian troops from Bakhmut positions - general, FTSE 100 Live: HSBC profits soar to $12.9 billion; BP results, Minister to provide update on Sue Gray switch to Labour, Lil Nas X swapped clothes for body makeup at the Met Gala, Online petition to save Brixton Academy surpasses 50,000 signatures, Princess Charlotte pictured smiling ahead of eighth birthday, Woman stabbed to death in street in Brixton, Blade Runner vandal chopping Ulez cameras down breaks silence. and was told my injuries were consistent with a blow to the head, so I assumed I had been mugged, but that's a supposition", Monday, December 11 As clergy called on their bishop to issue a statement of repentance and regret, he repeated that he had no memory of the episode, Tuesday, December 19 Dr Butler says that being intoxicated would have been "entirely out of character". The Independent (Oct 23, 2011).Heald, Tim. Witnesses reported him slurring his words, repeatedly loudly announcing himself as the Bishop of Southwark, and clumsily manhandling other guests. The Rt Rev Tom. It has strong historic ties to the brewing industry. Less than five hours later he arrived at his home in Tooting with head wounds, bruises and a black eye. In fact, Dr Tom Butler escaped disciplinary action over the mysterious incident, in which he suffered head injuries and lost his mobile telephone, crucifix and briefcase. The Bishop of Southwark grudgingly accepts the plan, though not without a lot of commentary about the proper role of the Church in such undertakings. Famous tourists included King Edward VII, Napoleon III and Otto Von Bismarck. In an extract from their book, Today South London, Tomorrow South London, ineffable degenerates Deserter remember a time when someone else had too much to drink namely the Bishop of Southwark. The suggestion in the headline that the report has concluded that the Bishop was drunk is completely misleading. Get involved in exciting, inspiring conversations. He has also co-authored two books with his wife Barbara: Just Mission and Just Spirituality in a World of Faiths. the Lord Bishop of Southwark. 'Drunken' bishop faces battle to save his job. The property developer says the bishop already had a graze "near his eye as if he had fallen over and hurt himself. With calls for the Bishop's resignation beginning to grow among the more abstemious members of the church, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, announced it would be 'dangerous' to rush to conclusions about what had happened. Dr Butler said he had been going to similar receptions for 20 years and was always "very careful" about his alcohol intake, Bishop was drunk after Christmas party, leaked report says. mojo In these records man clearly means player. Given his status and position as a pillar of society, the police took the complaint very seriously and launched an immediate investigation. Enter your password to log in. "It was not like he had been punched but more like he had scratched his face against a wall or had fallen over". I had a drink," said the bishop, with what may or may not be a degree of understatement. It's what I do.". There was a copious amount of champagne available for the multiple charging of glasses. Some allegations it discounts. I have no memory of what happened. It was a shameless cover-up. She confirmed he had been drinking at the Irish Embassy but declined to comment when asked if the Bishop had been drunk. The full story may never be known, but we can be ascertain a pretty good idea of what happened by piecing together the available facts. Shakespeares Local. In his eulogy, the Bishop told of his own affination with the industry when he revealed that he had started his career as a clerk in a brewery. Or. Inside, he discovered the 66-year-old Dr Butler sprawled across the back seat, tossing out his childs soft toys. Area Bishop of Woolwich 2005-2011 Bishop of Southwark from 2011-Biography on UK Parliament website (including Register of Interests) Contact Details: The Rt Revd Lord Bishop of Southwark House of Lords London SW1A 0PW. The commemoration started early doors when mourners piled into the nearby Wheatsheaf pub, a Youngs house. Owners and representatives of Britains most famous breweries were in attendance including Brains, Fullers, Hall & Woodhouse, Hook Norton, Shepherd Neame and Wadworths. I'm very careful. Michael De-la-Noy. Less than five hours later Dr Butler, a regular on Radio 4s Thought for the Day, arrived at his home in Tooting with head wounds, bruises and a black eye. The Wheatsheaf, Stoney Street (Borough Market). What happened between the party and his doorstep remains the subject of a number of bizarre and conflicting accounts. The Italian revolutionary Garibaldi later visited the brewery staff to personally thank them. You can opt-out at any time by signing in to your account to manage your preferences. However, about half an hour later, he reappeared on the other side of the city, wandering along the dark and desolate streets behind London Bridge railway station, with a bruised face and clearly the worse for wear. When you are drunk, you will run around. Titular Bishop of Glastonia. Asked what he was doing, the bishop allegedly told Paul Sumpter: "I'm the Bishop of Southwark. "He got a bump on the back of his head but he is OK and is in good spirits. Hearing his car alarm go off, a Mr Paul Sumpter, who was playing pool in the bar, dashed outside to investigate. Box 111Shohola, PA 18458, LONDON: Bishop was drunk after Christmas party, leaked report says. Butler has been active at national and international level. He retired to Wakefield, where he has been licensed as an honorary assistant bishop ever since first of the Diocese of Wakefield and then of the Diocese of Leeds. He retired from this position on 5 March 2010. Birth Place. Consultant neurosurgeon John Firth, who speaks on behalf of the head injury charity Headway, explained: "This is a condition which some link to epilepsy and others to a condition such as a stroke. It was subsequently suggested in the media that Butler, apparently under the influence of alcohol, had sustained the injury while being removed from a stranger's car into which he had apparently climbed. Ill leave the last words on the matter to probably the most reliable witness, the owner of the car that the Bishop had crawled into (who the inquiry investigators had inexplicably not called to testify). Whatever happened, the incident is sure to dismay church liberals and may induce glee among some evangelicals, because the bishop has been a doughty and outspoken sympathiser with the plight of gay people in the Church of England, especially Dr Jeffrey John, a former canon of Southwark, who was forced to stand down from his appointment as suffragan bishop of Reading by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, three years ago, after protests from evangelicals because he is gay. a week after she suffered life-changing injuries in a four-vehicle crash on the A120 Bishop's Stortford bypass. The Dean of Southwark is appointed by the Bishop of Southwark. The Bishop was seen throwing children's toys out of the window of a stranger's car and, when challenged, is reported to have said: "I'm the Bishop of Southwark - it's what I do.". "I knew already because it was the second time he had told me. However, the 'mugging' is no longer being investigated by the Metropolitan police. This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Mr Sumpter, from Beckenham, South London, said: "What are you doing in my car?' Or, even more intriguingly, could it be - as the indignant Bishop now claims - a sudden neurological affliction which has left him unable to recall any of the post-party events? Each Episcopal Area has a team of staff working with local parishes. But was it true? Get involved in exciting, inspiring conversations with other readers. I arrived home without my briefcase and with bruising on my face and a gash on my head. Paul Sumpter, the car's owner, was playing pool in a nearby bar when the car's alarm went off and he and a number of other customers went out to investigate. Religion is now characterised as somehow odd, out of touch, even elitist. At this stage, it is claimed that Dr Butler told onlookers he was in fact the Bishop of Woolwich, but the personal belongings he left behind in Mr Sumpters car told a different story a story that was to come out when Sumpter saw press reports of the mugging of a Bishop and came forward with his side of the tale. "I can remember the reception. Obituaries: The Right Rev Mervyn Stockwood. Mistaken identity? You may even spot a mitre or two. Warning nurses could keep striking up until Christmas, Online petition to save Brixton Academy surpasses 50,000 signatures, Minister to provide update on Sue Gray switch to Labour, Ukraine army drive out Russian troops from Bakhmut positions - general, Australia bans recreational vaping in major public health move, Woman stabbed to death in street in Brixton, Princess Charlotte pictured smiling ahead of eighth birthday. "We're going though the whole gamut because we're worried. The latter was later confined to the Marshalsea in Southwark, dying there as a prisoner in 1569. Let's hope it leads to serious action at last! After ordination in 1964,[3] he served three years as a curate in the Diocese of Ely and Diocese of Canterbury before spending 12 years as a lecturer in electronics and a chaplain at the University of Zambia and then at the University of Kent in Canterbury. "It's very worrying, I still have amnesia," he said. There was not much of a case to answer. The last barrel of Courage Best left the plant 20 years before John Youngs memorial service. And the 'mugging' injuries? But most unfairly, the report stated that the Bishop conducted the John Young memorial service earlier that same day, when it had actually taken place several days earlier, as laid out above. I came home certainly with an injury and with a loss of property.". One was the King's Bench, and the other the Clink, whence the expression "in the clink." Its site is today recalled by Clink Street, near Southwark Cathedral. Joined February 2012. "I told the police I arrived home without my briefcase and with bruising on my face and a gash on the back of my head. The situation calmed and the Bishop flopped down on the kerb, ignoring all offers of assistance. he decided on legal advice that no further action should be taken. Half pints of Guinness and tots of spirits were being dispensed with a generous hand at bars dotted around the ballroom while waiters constantly circulated to top up wine glasses. It was a major attraction with over 10,000 visitors a month. In the light of the further evidence . "He wouldn't get out so they could pull him away. He made his way up the staircase into the ballroom, where he was announced by the Master of Ceremonies. Butler's beliefs were cited as the reason for some "valid but irregular" ordinations in his diocese.
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