Their London and their times - Looking for anchors during turbulent times
All Saints Church
Lily is surprised by the sheer size of the Church of All Saints. It could have seated the village several times over. The medieval architects and stone masons didn’t see the Black Death coming. If only they had known that the village would be a fraction of its original size by the end of the fourteenth century.
Like Auntie’s farmhouse, the church in Some Family Matters is based on a real place, All Saints, the church of the village of Tilney All saints. It has an imposing 13th century tower topped by a stone spire and pinnacles, The church stands out in its flat Fens setting.
The core of the church is Norman, as the lovely arcades of the nave show. These run through both nave and chancel, and their capitals have a wide range of carved decoration. Among and in between the Norman columns are woodwork screens dating from the 15th to the 17th century. 
The Jacobean rood screen has two delicately carved lower stages and an upper stage with the Jacobean motifs of obelisks and balusters. The screen still has its original doors which separate the chancel from the nave, the main part of the church. The idea was that only the vicar and the choir should be allowed near to the altar. People taking communion could be allowed through the gate to approach the altar, but only when they were invited by the vicar.
Looking down on all this woodwork is a magnificent double hammerbeam roof, with a complex array of carved timbers among which are wooden angels with outstretched wings.