November 29, 1907

Christopher Woodforde (November 29, 1907 to August 12, 1962)was an Anglican priest and writer. Woodforde went to Cambridge. His career included a series of curacies, followed by several incumbencies. After the war he was a Chaplain (and Fellow I believe, necessarily) at New College Oxford.

There is an exceptionally nice website for the Woodfordes, an old English family. The quotes below are from it. First their summary of his literary output:

"Christopher Woodforde is known for two distinct strands of writing, namely his ghost stories written in the style of M.R.James and his studies of stained glass which are recognised as definitive works.

"His stories were first intended to be heard, rather than read. They were revised and rewritten after their first telling (to young choirboys) but are still regarded by some literary critics as rather juvenile tales.

"His interests in antiquities led Dr Woodforde to a major study of ecclesiastical stained glass. He began with small popular booklets - A Guide to the Medieval Glass in Lincoln Cathedral (1933), The Medieval Glass of St Peter Mancroft, Norwich (1934) and Stained and Painted Glass in England(1937).

"His first major work was Stained Glass in Somerset 1250-1830 which he published in 1946. This was followed by The Norwich School of Glass-Painting in the fifteenth Century published in 1950 by Oxford University Press.

"His recognised stature in this subject led to honorary degrees from Cambridge (Litt.D in 1947) and Oxford (D.Litt in 1948). Whilst at Oxford he wrote his third major work The Stained Glass of New College, Oxford which was published in 1951."

One of Christopher Woodforde's stories is included in The Oxford Book of English Ghost Stories (1986.) Of the story titled "Cushi," I wrote this synopsis:

In 1939, the sexton of Cotterly church in a quiet English village, named Rooksgate Green, was Cushi Holloway. Sextons have the job of making sure the furnace heats the church, and jobs like digging graves. Holloway was also an expert in the history of Cotterly Church. And the sexton also had a "wonderful way with cats" who came to church when there was a baptism and sat in an orderly half circle. This was considered by the villagers an omen of good luck for the newly baptised infant. A new rector is critical of the sexton's ways and he excludes cats from church baptisms. As it happened both sexton and rector die within a small time frame after the War begins. One of the subsequent bombs during the War breaks open Cushi's casket where he is found to be holding what looks like the rector's skull.

A look at the life of this Anglican priest, is a look at 20th century Britain, and I quote again, and liberally, from the link I used above:

"Christopher Woodforde was....ordained in 1930.

"He served in a number of curacies including King's Lynn (1930-1932), Louth with Welton-le-Wold (1932-1934) and Drayton with Hellesdon, Norwich (1934-1936) before becoming Rector of Exford, Somerset in 1936, and Axbridge, Somerset in 1939, and Vicar of Steeple Morden, Cambs in 1945.

"In recognition of his major work, The Stained Glass in Somerset'...published in 1948, he was invited to New College, Oxford, as Chaplain. He also served as Canon and Wiccanical Prebendary at Chichester Cathedral (1950-1953).

"He married Muriel Forster in 1935. She died prematurely in 1951 after a painful illness, and during his remaining years at Oxford it is said that Dr Woodforde became isolated and depressed. His depression affected his last major published work English Stained and Painted Glass (1954) which some critics described as terse and `almost unreadable'.

"He was finally offered the post of Dean of Wells, which he occupied until his own untimely death, due to cancer, at the age of 54.... A memorial tablet was erected in the cloisters of the cathedral to commemorate his work in the diocese of Bath and Wells.

"Lord David Cecil, in his memoirs, refers to Christopher Woodforde as the `sardonic chaplain (of New College)', `not altogether a popular figure in the college, having an extremely sharp tongue'.

"John Bayley in Widower's House: A Study in Bereavement or How Margot and Mella Forced [Me] to Flee My Home gives a further insight into this sharp but perhaps somewhat melancholy man:

"Christopher Woodforde hated the college warden, in a manner altogether disproportionate to that unfortunate man's capacity to be a nuisance, although indeed he could be one. When the warden died, Christopher gave an eloquent and touching address at the funeral - like many sardonic clergymen, he was an excellent preacher - and afterwards he was congratulated on it by Alan Bullock (now Lord Bullock), the history fellow. Giving him a venomous glance, the chaplain hissed, "I hope the bastard is frying in hell."