Lynn
Lynn’s favourite feature of Bury is the worn and shiny cobbled floor inside the Abbey gate. “For me, it conjures up the thousands of footsteps of the townspeople coming to the Abbey to pay their taxes or trade with the monks.”
Having spent most of her life as a professional theatre-maker, she loves to sing, and knit. A lot!
Her favourite thing about being a guide is when people who have lived locally for years discover something they never knew about the town.
Fun fact: “A few years ago I locked someone inside the Guildhall, good job they had the sense to climb out of a window and let me know it was open!”
Peta
Peta’s favourite feature of Bury is the Cathedral’s Millennium tower.
She enjoys tennis, gardening, playing in a recorder consort and swimming at Old Felixstowe. Brrrr!
Her favourite thing about being a guide is sharing her love of Bury’s beautiful architecture and history.
Fun fact: she won the Fastest Women’s Half Pint at Hampstead Beer Festival!
Martyn
Martyn’s favourite feature of Bury is the beautiful interior of St Mary’s Church
He is currently working on Written in Stone, an archive about names and inscriptions on walls and buildings.
His favourite thing about being a guide is meeting new people and telling them about our historic town.
Fun fact: he tells the most wonderful jokes (…or not!)
Mike
Mike’s favourite feature of Bury are the regular street markets plus other markets throughout the year.
When not guiding, he enjoys lepidoptery (butterflies and moths), gardening, meteorology and still trying to master the French language.
He loves meeting a broad range of interesting groups and clients and helping to bring the town to life for them to enhance their visit.
Fun fact: he appeared with Laura on Paul Daniels’ Every Second Counts, getting to the glorious final! He still signs autograph books.
Adrian
Adrian’s favourite feature of Bury is its Georgian Market Cross, the town’s first theatre and ‘the finest post-medieval building in Bury’.
Among his interests are walking football, watching cricket, dancing and Rupert Bear!
His favourite thing about being a guide is meeting new people and sharing the delights of Bury with them.
Fun fact: as an archaeologist in Cheshire he excavated Daresbury Parsonage, the birthplace of Lewis Carroll.
Melanie
Melanie’s favourite features of Bury are the avenues of trees in the Great Churchyard.
She enjoys visiting museums and galleries in the UK and Europe and walking her dogs.
Her favourite thing about being a town guide is meeting interesting and enthusiastic visitors and helping them to become more familiar with our beautiful town.
Fun fact: Martha’s Vineyard, the Massachusetts island, was named after a Martha who was born and died in Bury St Edmunds. Baby daughter of Captain Bartholomew Gosnold, explorer and prime mover, who named the island Martha’s Vineyard in her memory in 1602.
John S
John’s favourite feature of Bury is any image of St Edmund (and there are a lot to be found in town).
When not guiding, he enjoys researching his family and local history, being a rickshaw rider and working as a fundraiser/volunteer.
His favourite part of guiding is learning new facts about the town he grew up in, and being able to show and tell others about the delights of Bury.
Fun fact: he has starred in CBeebies and Crimewatch!
Terry
Terry loves showing visitors that around every corner in Bury there is another historical building behind which there are fascinating tales – often of national and international significance, in addition to their local importance.
Terry’s hobbies are related to his interest in local history, currently being Historical advisor to the West Suffolk Hospital History Society as well as an active speaker. Travel also features strongly having made many friends whilst working Worldwide during a long career in industry.
Fun fact: In the early 1990s whilst on an internal Russian flight (with no seatbelts), watching in disbelief as a passenger lit a primus stove in the aisle to make tea!
Jules
As a native of Essex Jules fell in love with Bury St Edmunds, moving to the town in 2015. With a degree in heritage management and having worked for the National Trust and English Heritage, you could say she is passionate about all things history!
A love of gardens means the Abbey Gardens is a favourite on the tour, whilst tales of The Clash playing in the 1970’s and the social highlife of the Georgian era appeal as part of the unique story Bury St Edmunds has to tell.
Meeting people from around the world, as well as those very local, is one of her favourite things about being a tour guide.
Fun Fact: she has 3 black cats and knows about medicinal herbs – beware……….
Stephen
Stephen is Bury born and bred, and has been guiding in and around the town since 2007.
His favourite part of the role is meeting new people and sharing our wonderful stories and history. ‘Bury really is an undiscovered gem, and it is a privilege to be able to welcome visitors and locals to discover it’s story’
‘It is difficult to pick out a favourite building – we have so many to choose from – but I must admit my love of the Abbey Gardens!’
As well as Bury, he also guides in the Wool Towns of Lavenham, Sudbury and Melford.
Fun Fact: He was head chorister at our beautiful Cathedral back in his (much) younger days!
Richard
Richard’s favourite view in Bury is of Churchgate Street, imagining pilgrims leaving the chapel at the top of the road, going down through the gate leading to the Abbey, and being awestruck by the sight of the huge building beyond which housed St Edmund’s shrine.
There is always more to learn about this beautiful town, and more to share with tourists and also local people eager to hear about it.
Fun fact: On Kilimanjaro’s peak, briefly the highest human in Africa, he asked his guide to take his picture but forgot to mention that the viewfinder displayed more than the subject. A treasured photo shows our conquering hero, but only from the neck down.
Caroline
Caroline loves the grandeur and elegance of the Athenaeum in Bury. ‘It is such a beautiful Georgian gem of building. Being in the ball room makes me wonder about those who entertained there in the 18th century! I also got married in there in 2017.’
She likes to travel, both in the UK and abroad, history, reading, cooking (including a weekly dine around the world menu during lock down) , the theatre and swimming. I took up lake swimming in 2018 and have completed the Great East Swim twice.
She enjoys meeting people and making sure that those on a tour have both an interesting and enjoyable experience. ‘I am proud of Bury St Edmunds and am keen to show visitors around the town pointing out key points of interest so they learn about the rich history of the town.’
Fun fact: She worked for many years for the Probation Service in Leicestershire and often parked unknowingly above Richard III in the Social Services car park in Leicester!
