Fiona Bruce and a storm in Sudbury
TV presenter enrages residents with brutally honest column about ‘recession-hit’ town
SHE reads the news with unwavering impartiality. But in her role as a parttime travel writer, Fiona Bruce is finding that offering her opinions is a much riskier business.
She has been hit by an angry backlash from a Suffolk town after some rather frank observations in her newspaper column.
She described Sudbury as recession- hit and complained it has too many charity shops. And she committed the even greater faux pas of describing one of its best-loved churches as a ‘relic’. Locals said the comments were ‘utter rubbish’ and criticised her journalistic skills, telling her to return to the town to look round properly.
The Antiques Roadshow presenter’s column, Fiona Bruce’s Britain in The Daily Telegraph, highlights ‘unsung attractions’.
However, it seems Miss Bruce was left unimpressed by Sudbury, famous as the birthplace of 18th- century painter Thomas Gainsborough.
She said the ‘recession has taken its toll’, adding: ‘There are forlorn empty premises and an overabundance of charity shops.’ Miss Bruce seemed particularly unenthusiastic about St Peter’s Church in the centre of the town.
‘[It] was built during the 15th cen- tury on a Norman site, its pews once full of local folk singing hymns,’ she wrote. ‘Now it’s a relic of past observance, no people, not even a pew.’
The Friends of St Peter’s, which looks after the church, hit back at the comments.
Town councillor Peter Gray, who is on the committee, said: ‘St Peter’s was closed for public worship in 1971 but it is one of the most used redundant churches in Britain and is second only to one in York for visitor numbers. It is booked two years in advance for events ranging from farmers’ markets to concerts.’
Councillor Lesley Ford-Platt criticised Miss Bruce’s journalism.
She said: ‘She is talking utter rubbish. I do not know what day she came – it sounds like 6pm on a Sunday.
‘ I am really disappointed she would say these things. She is influential, she is a respected journalist. What she had down is a snapshot of the town without looking at what’s actually offered.
‘Yes, Sudbury has some charity shops but there is a huge number of independent traders.’
Roger Green, chairman of the Friends of St Peter’s, added: ‘We have composed a letter to Miss Bruce inviting her to return to Sudbury to see the things she obviously missed the first time around.’
Last night Miss Bruce was unavailable for comment.