Art, history and faith meet at Newcastle’s Cathedral of St. Nicholas

St. Nicholas’s Cathedral in Newcastle is distinctive for its lantern spire. The cathedral’s most famous feature is not part of the cathedral at all. The Vampire Rabbit, a gargoyle of mysterious origin, actually sits above the doorway of an adjacent office block near some nice hotels in Newcastle.

Interesting features of the cathedral interior include the ancient effigy memorializing an unknown knight as well as the fifteenth century Flemish Thornton Brass. The Danish War Memorial and its associated window memorialize the hospitality of Newcastle on Tyne is serving as the home port of Denmark’s fishing fleet during World War II.

St. Nicholas offers a wide variety of musical performances. Of particular note is the free weekly organ concert at 1pm on Mondays, employing one of the largest and most flexible pipe organs in northern Europe. Vocal ensembles ranging from the choir proper through children’s choirs to the Cathedral Consort also perform periodically.