Southwell Minister announced today that their next Dean will be the Revd Canon Dr Stephen Evans, who is currently the Rector of St Marylebone in central London. He will be installed as Dean on 19 April 2026. The Minster is the cathedral of the diocese of Southwell and Nottingham. Its website has more details here.
What badge is the future Dean of Southwell wearing in his left lapel?
It looks like a Sigma with a quill.
Congratulations to Stephen. That’s three senior clergy in Southwell and Nottingham who are all London ‘exports’.
Before Marylebone Stephen was in diocese of Peterborough at parish of Uppingham so not 100% London!
Absolutely splendid appointment!
Naval part of his bio is slightly odd. Nobody refers to having been at ‘Dartmouth, Royal Naval College’, you would either say ‘Dartmouth’, or ‘Britannia Royal Naval College’, or ‘BRNC’. Moreover his career length was far too short to have qualified as a navigator, let alone a warfare officer. In that era he would have joined BRNC as a ‘seaman officer’, and having not progressed beyond midshipman he clearly never even completed basic training. Presumably he used the religious vocation clause to extract himself from the navy without the normal ‘return of service’ requirement.
Yes, I also noticed that and, also, he uses the title ‘Dr’. He was awarded an honorary doctorate by Aberdeen. I always find it odd when honorary awards lead to the use of the title. It is best to spill some ink before using that title. Having said that, many in Southwell and Nottingham will be very pleased the Minster is not to become an HTB plant!
Indeed. I think his appointment is generally very welcome in Southwell Minster – I speak as a member of the community there.
Apropos the use of doctoral titles – there was a time when those elevated to the episcopate would be found honorary doctorates so that they could be described as Dr N – so I hardly think he needs castigating for this.
I am a bit puzzled too, but for a different reason. The naval college labelling might well be sub-editing by a comms specialist to make the press release understandable to lay people But as for his career, his current church in Marylebone give some details on his biography “Prior to ordination Stephen served as a Seaman Officer in the Royal Navy serving in HMS AVELEY, HMS ARGONAUT and HMS GALATEA before reading Theology at the University of Oxford.” Such a Royal Navy career seems plausible, but a very long time ago. These three ships are a mine-hunter and two Leander… Read more »
According to Crockford’s he was born in 1960, which makes him 65 (or so close as to make little difference).
Thanks Simon, I could not find the DOB in the Navy resources I automatically turn to.
That age would tie in, assuming Stephen went straight from school to Dartmouth to sea, whereas the Navy sent me to a civilian university to study engineering for three years. Hence the mismatch in career timing. I was born in 56.
So about four years at sea following training would be possible.
Born 1960, and my guess is late that year otherwise well under 5 years to serve as Dean. His BA from St Stephen’s is 1985, so must have started back in Oct 1982, which does not leave enough time to complete naval training, which in the early 1980s for a seaman officer took at least 3 years (Dartmouth, Mid’s seatime, Sub Lts courses), even for short service officers. Moreover had he progressed beyond Midshipman I am sure that it would have been on his CV! Only aircrew could get through faster – and he was not one of us.
I can see your point of view.
For myself I was simply amused/bemused by the prominence given on various CVs to a naval career which was very short and very junior a very long time ago.
But with the ordination training dates you give, and if he graduated from Dartmouth in 1981, then one wonders how that career was fitted in at all.
I see his biog on the St Marylebone website makes crystal clear he was a Seaman Officer and his doctorate is honorary. I didn’t look at it before this evening, but my curiosity has been piqued by these comments to ask if anyone else looked earlier and if changes were made…