Final furlong for First Derry

FIRST Derry's skeletons and a section of the former church walls will form part of the historic fabric of the newly revamped main building, when the church is completed and re-opened in May.

Excitement is building over on the Walls, where builders are hard at work on the interior of the church. Workmen are due to start fitting the pews in the next week, once they have finished the floor structure and support work, which they have been doing for the past week, and First Derry Minister, Rev Dr David Latimer is remaining tight-lipped about what he is planning for the re-opening in mid-May.

Last week Dr Latimer accompanied me for a sneeky-peek behind facade of scaffolding and security netting which still swaddles the exterior of the historic building and photographer Maurice Thompson joined us for the tour.

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For those who have not been inside the church since it was closed seven years or more ago for safety reasons after dry-rot was discovered, the photographs with this article may shock. The inside of the building has not just been 'stripped out' the entire interior, from the floor to the actual roofing was taken away. The space left behind was laid bare, from the earth 'floor' right to the underside of the outer skin of the roof. It was, in truth, a jaw-dropping sight to see the old lady in a raw state.

My tour began in the Blue Coat School - a separate room at the rear of the main church, which has also been gutted, and piles of rubble and broken timber are heaped high on the floor. In time display cabinets and information panels will proclaim the history of the Presbyterian's spiritual journey in the city, because there are plans afoot to convert this space into an interpretive centre which will function like a fully-interactive museum come visitor centre. A sum of 150,000 is being spent on this space. That said, it's sad to walk in here and see the bright wallpaper and paint defiantly proclaim the school's former use as a Sunday School (and community playgroup during the week). The bright blue and yellow walls (reflecting the blue tunics and yellow stockings of the young people who led the praise that would have been worn as part of their uniform) are scored and scuffed, a third of the ceiling is down some of the windows are put out and it is so very cold.

"I have had this vision, which I have developed in conjunction with Andy Best from the NITB of being able to tell the Presbyterian story," he says, adding: "It is a story that has never been well told. While plans were developing for the church and funds were being sorted and lo and behold he said he thought he could do something and now this lovely old historic building is going to be used very appropriately for sharing key aspects of Presbyterian culture, religion and life within the setting of the whole city."

David tells me the space between the old school and the rear access of the church is to have two vital future uses. Tucked in the corner to the left of the old school there is just enough space for a prefabricated room which will serve as a space for little people at a creche.

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"Outside in this courtyard we are going to develop a little exterior seating area where there will be murals on the walls and further ingredients on this story, and if people wish to there is the door into the church, which will allow people to go in and see the church and further develop their understanding of the church by being inside," he said.

It's bitterly cold inside, where we pass workmen raising dust sawing, drilling, hammering and shifting impossible loads as we make our way to the back of the old building. We stop at the doorway between the vestibule and the main body of the church where two men are busy laying lengths of timber. David informs me that they are preping for the pews which are scheduled to go in within the next week or two. Maybe then it will look like a church again.

Other plans include moving the organ into a pit in the centre of the ground floor so that the choir will face the choirmaster/organist, and a discrete viewing area is to be created to one side of the front of the church for one of the 'First Derry skeletons' to go on display beneath protective glass, which will also let people see the remnants of the wall from the previous church.

"Underneath the floorboards we found earth and with a bit of digging we that explains why we discovered deeper into the soil a previous layer of stones going back to 1690 - the original building - and these skeletal remains as well, which we found not too far from the pulpit. In the past people were quite happy to place the remains of their loved ones underneath their living space and underneath churches and it conveys a way in which our ancestors were more at ease with death. You had the dead amongst the living," he said.

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Initially neither Maurice nor I noticed, so busy were we looking down (fascinated by the skeletons) but a beautiful new wooden ceiling has been created and in the gallery we stare upwards for ages.

To ensure the church gets the green light for access, a lift is being installed, work is continuing on the new lecture rooms, new kitchen and rest rooms, making First Derry a state-of-the-art 'old' girl!

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