on Monday, 1 December 2025 at 11.21 am by Peter Owen
categorised as Church of England, News
The Revd Canon Dr Philip Hobday has been appointed as the next Dean of Wakefield; he is currently the sub-dean. Details are on the Leeds diocesan website and on the cathedral website. He will be installed on Saturday 07 March 2026.
Not too long ago Bradford and Wakefield Cathedrals had Provosts, and Ripon Cathedral had a Dean. The first two are former parish Churches, Ripon on the other hand as a Saxon foundation is a clear front-runner to be sole cathedral. This won’t happen, but the number of bishops, deans, archdeacons, and cathedral canons is embarassing.
Be grateful you are not in the United Dioceses of Tuam, Killala, Achonry, Limerick, Ardfert, Aghadoe, Killaloe, Kilfenora, Clonfert, Kilmacduagh and Emly.
Let’s not be too judgmental. If you squint a bit all these cathedrals in Leeds Diocese are simply resource churches with a lot more bling, a much larger analog synthesiser and a better dressed music group and clergy.
Analog synthesiser? Surely you mean digital synthesiser, analogue synthesisers were made out of discrete components with transistors, resistors, capacitors, which constructed oscillators and filters. There were no digital elements.
Whereas digital synthesisers use digital processors and work in the digital domain.
I think a performance of performance in a cathedral may be a step too far.
Possibly naïve of me, but I assumed this ‘much larger analog synthesiser’ was a humorous alias for the cathedral pipe organ and ‘music group’ the choirs, organists and music directors.
Ripon has a particularly fine organ and Wakefield’s boasts five manuals, albeit that size alone doesn’t define a great instrument.
The opus Dei is maintained at all three cathedrals. When the Leeds diocese was proposed there was a suggestion that Leeds Minster might serve as the pro-Cathedral, but, so far as I am aware, it seems nothing came of that idea.
I think Anglican in Exile’s comment could be interpreted in many ways! I was being pedantic, but I care about these things, having build a large analogue synthesiser in the 1970’s and played the real pipe organ. I took an interest at one time in developing physical models of a pipe organ, using digital processing tools from Native Instruments.
Digital organs used in churches often used sample of real organs. However, I understand modern research has led to physical modelling of pipes, which I was trying out (unsuccessfully) in the 1970’s.
I don’t know the organ of Bradford Cathedral, hence not commenting specifically about it. Ripon’s pipe organ is of the ‘Rolls Royce’ calibre, something which the then president of the Royal College of Organists said to me about Winchester Cathedral organ (I’m aware of similar claims made by others elsewhere). Viscount have supplied temporary electronic organs at several cathedrals (including Canterbury, Winchester and Gloucester) recently while the pipe organ was undergoing restoration. I have no experience in this field, but have visited both Henry Willis & Sons and Harrison & Harrison who continue to produce and restore superlative pipe organs… Read more »
I think, if you’ll pardon the expression, it’s what you do with them that counts. Cathedrals are not required to have an enormous paid staff simply by virtue of status. They can cut their cloth to fit, same as an other church, and thus there is no particular reason to remove cathedral status. My own diocese, Argyll & The Isles, has two cathedrals, one staffed at present only by a lay chaplain and the other only by the Provost.
Perhaps the question is who pays, how much, and for what.
I don’t know, but do all 3 cathedrals in Leeds diocese still each get Dean and 2 Canons paid for by the Commissioners?
Forgive me if i disagree. There has been a great deal of contention about the Diocese of Leeds, but Ripon, Wakefield and Bradford are incredibly different and serve different purposes. I know – I have worked in all three!! For all the tribalism in the church we which need to work, there is also a rather beautiful and important Northern pride/tribalism which needs a context here. You cant just say “three cathedrals is too many”. I think we need to distinguish between liturgical and spiritual centres, as well as administrative centres. Maybe Leeds Diocese is more of an uber-multi-parish benefice… Read more »
No forgiveness needed for such a helpful and well informed comment.
John S
2 days ago
Viewed in organisational terms rather than pastoral terms, the Leeds situation shows that if you merge complete dioceses, each constituent diocese retains its sense of identity, and it’s very difficult to avoid ending up having largely just created a new layer above the continuing components. I suggest that, although it seems more brutal, reductions of dioceses, if they are to be effective in producing savings, need to take an existing diocese, split it up, and distribute the parts to several neighbouring dioceses. As a former parishioner in Guildford, I suggest that’s a prime candidate – distribute the parishes between at… Read more »
I’m reminded of the story of the Somerset farmer who visited the Vatican and was invited to see the Papal chicken house. The Cardinale de Pollo (forgive my Italian) proudly showed him the elaborately decorated apartments where the birds lived in total luxury, the little capes in various liturgical colours which they wore according to the seasons, including the little gold crowns and spurs for major festivals, and the elaborate food they were given (except, he was told) on Fridays and Ash Wednesday. He was suitably unimpressed and grew redder in the face as time went on. In the end… Read more »
Three cathedrals in a diocese is two too many.
I agree with Maungy Vicar. They can become minsters, and be staff as minsters are.
Any other declining organisation would be stripping away layers of middle management …
how do you decide which one becomes the cathedra of Bishop of Leeds
Not too long ago Bradford and Wakefield Cathedrals had Provosts, and Ripon Cathedral had a Dean. The first two are former parish Churches, Ripon on the other hand as a Saxon foundation is a clear front-runner to be sole cathedral. This won’t happen, but the number of bishops, deans, archdeacons, and cathedral canons is embarassing.
Be grateful you are not in the United Dioceses of Tuam, Killala, Achonry, Limerick, Ardfert, Aghadoe, Killaloe, Kilfenora, Clonfert, Kilmacduagh and Emly.
Indeed. But if I remember correctly, there are no longer cathedrals in Achonry, Ardfert. Aghadoe, Kilmacduagh and Emly!
Let’s not be too judgmental. If you squint a bit all these cathedrals in Leeds Diocese are simply resource churches with a lot more bling, a much larger analog synthesiser and a better dressed music group and clergy.
Analog synthesiser? Surely you mean digital synthesiser, analogue synthesisers were made out of discrete components with transistors, resistors, capacitors, which constructed oscillators and filters. There were no digital elements.
Whereas digital synthesisers use digital processors and work in the digital domain.
I think a performance of performance in a cathedral may be a step too far.
https://cdm.link/watch-mick-jagger-rock-moog-modular/
Possibly naïve of me, but I assumed this ‘much larger analog synthesiser’ was a humorous alias for the cathedral pipe organ and ‘music group’ the choirs, organists and music directors.
Ripon has a particularly fine organ and Wakefield’s boasts five manuals, albeit that size alone doesn’t define a great instrument.
The opus Dei is maintained at all three cathedrals. When the Leeds diocese was proposed there was a suggestion that Leeds Minster might serve as the pro-Cathedral, but, so far as I am aware, it seems nothing came of that idea.
I think Anglican in Exile’s comment could be interpreted in many ways! I was being pedantic, but I care about these things, having build a large analogue synthesiser in the 1970’s and played the real pipe organ. I took an interest at one time in developing physical models of a pipe organ, using digital processing tools from Native Instruments.
Digital organs used in churches often used sample of real organs. However, I understand modern research has led to physical modelling of pipes, which I was trying out (unsuccessfully) in the 1970’s.
https://viscountorgans.net/what-is-physis-technology/
I don’t know the organ of Bradford Cathedral, hence not commenting specifically about it. Ripon’s pipe organ is of the ‘Rolls Royce’ calibre, something which the then president of the Royal College of Organists said to me about Winchester Cathedral organ (I’m aware of similar claims made by others elsewhere). Viscount have supplied temporary electronic organs at several cathedrals (including Canterbury, Winchester and Gloucester) recently while the pipe organ was undergoing restoration. I have no experience in this field, but have visited both Henry Willis & Sons and Harrison & Harrison who continue to produce and restore superlative pipe organs… Read more »
Thanks.
I think, if you’ll pardon the expression, it’s what you do with them that counts. Cathedrals are not required to have an enormous paid staff simply by virtue of status. They can cut their cloth to fit, same as an other church, and thus there is no particular reason to remove cathedral status. My own diocese, Argyll & The Isles, has two cathedrals, one staffed at present only by a lay chaplain and the other only by the Provost.
This is so with all the Irish cathedrals outside Dublin. Cloyne, for example, is little more than a village church.
Perhaps the question is who pays, how much, and for what.
I don’t know, but do all 3 cathedrals in Leeds diocese still each get Dean and 2 Canons paid for by the Commissioners?
Yes.
Forgive me if i disagree. There has been a great deal of contention about the Diocese of Leeds, but Ripon, Wakefield and Bradford are incredibly different and serve different purposes. I know – I have worked in all three!! For all the tribalism in the church we which need to work, there is also a rather beautiful and important Northern pride/tribalism which needs a context here. You cant just say “three cathedrals is too many”. I think we need to distinguish between liturgical and spiritual centres, as well as administrative centres. Maybe Leeds Diocese is more of an uber-multi-parish benefice… Read more »
No forgiveness needed for such a helpful and well informed comment.
Viewed in organisational terms rather than pastoral terms, the Leeds situation shows that if you merge complete dioceses, each constituent diocese retains its sense of identity, and it’s very difficult to avoid ending up having largely just created a new layer above the continuing components. I suggest that, although it seems more brutal, reductions of dioceses, if they are to be effective in producing savings, need to take an existing diocese, split it up, and distribute the parts to several neighbouring dioceses. As a former parishioner in Guildford, I suggest that’s a prime candidate – distribute the parishes between at… Read more »
Congrats to the new dean, and prayers for his ministry and that of the whole cathedral community.
Amen
I’m reminded of the story of the Somerset farmer who visited the Vatican and was invited to see the Papal chicken house. The Cardinale de Pollo (forgive my Italian) proudly showed him the elaborately decorated apartments where the birds lived in total luxury, the little capes in various liturgical colours which they wore according to the seasons, including the little gold crowns and spurs for major festivals, and the elaborate food they were given (except, he was told) on Fridays and Ash Wednesday. He was suitably unimpressed and grew redder in the face as time went on. In the end… Read more »
“each of the Cathedrals had its own particular ministry and culture, developed over many centuries”
Bradford became a cathedral in 1919; Wakefield in 1888; Ripon in 1836. So none of them has been a cathedral for “centuries”