Have a go at our next caption competition (above). Send entries by email only to captioncompetition@churchtimes.co.uk by 9 a.m., Friday, 9 December
Here is the winning entry for the previous competition:
Alamy
L’eau it comes from clouds descending (Bill de Quick)
A DOWNPOUR during a royal visit is bound to cause misunderstandings: “New rain begins” (Michael Doe); “Singing in the rain” (Aaron Milne); “Long to rain over us” (Stewart Skilbeck); “We’re singing in the reign” (Clair Jaquiss); “It’s beginning to rain, Sir.” “So am I” (John Saxbee); “The choir wished the King a long and happy reign” (David Billin); “A bit of rain for the new reign wasn’t going to dampen their holy spirits” (Michael Foster); “Long to rain over us. . .?” (Charles Taylor); “He’d waited a long time for it, but now his reign had begun at last” (Peter M Potter).
It’s not clear whether this picture was taken before or after an egg was thrown at the King, but it always pays to be vigilant: “I say, do you think that egg is coming this way?” (Bill Bishop); “Spot the next egg proved highly entertaining for all” (Vicky Deasley); “As Commander-in-Chief of all armed forces, I estimate that on that trajectory the egg is going to hit . . . you” (Paul Vincent); “At least it’s raining cats and dogs, not eggs” (Sheena Batey); “Met office forecast heavy egg showers for Royal Visit” (Ken Wilkinson).
It is also wise to scan the skies for other threats: “I’ve never seen so many pigeons; one’s glad I brought my umbrella” (Rena Plumridge); “Everyone, especially King Charles, was amused when the Archbishop was ‘anointed’ by the seagull” (Hazel Rea); “Right in the middle of the carol concert, King Charles spotted Prince Harry’s plane flying overhead on its way back to the United States. ‘Hallelujah,’ he loudly sang” (Jane Holyland); “The choristers regretted throwing their mortar boards into the air” (Brian Stevenson).
Careful what you sing for: “They said ‘sing the roof off’; we didn’t think it would actually happen!” (Fiona Drinkell); “The choir sang to raise the roof and utterly surprised ONE when it happened” (Kim Willing); “King Charles enjoyed the choristers’ rendition of ‘Come down, O rain divine’” (Alison Woods); “Will someone please tell the Archbishop to come down from the spire!” (Pauline Collier); “How on earth do you think the Dean got up there?” (David White).
Some other entries that we enjoyed: “Look, boys! There goes the flight into Egypt. I should have been on it but the PM wouldn’t let me go to COP27” (Jonathan Young); “Is that the Bishop or Father Christmas?” (Wendy Preece); “‘Water friend we have in Jesus,’ quipped the King, to much loyal merriment from the Royal School of Church Music” (David Hole); “And is it a local tradition to tie the choirmaster to the bell tower every Sunday?” (Karen Bowman); “At least one choirboy thought to use his hymnbook as a shield” (Chris Coupe) “Now that there is a train strike, we will be staying in York for the weekend” (Patrick Irwin); “Yes, my dear, I can assure you that no camel was harmed in the manufacture of my coat” (Ray Morris); “Despite the rain, the Bishop’s high-wire trapeze act was well received by the choir and the royal visitors” (Mark Parry) “Where’s the umbrella stand?” “It’s his day off” (Valerie Budd); “As they looked up at the new advertising hoarding for Prince Harry’s new book, the choir broke into a spontaneous rendition of ‘Always look on the bright side of life’” (Caspar Bush).
“When you said the heavens would open, I didn’t realise you meant literally” (Lisa Olsworth-Peter); “Not even King Canute could control Mother Nature” (Richard Strudwick); “Well done, choir! That top note shattered the east window!” (Elaine Cooper); “The children flattered the King by telling him he could make manna fall from heaven” (Stephen Disley); “Lo, He comes with clouds descending” (Tony Edmonds); “As the choristers sang ‘We’re walking in the air’ to the King and Queen Consort, there was a flypast of snowmen over York Minster” (John Radford); “Another semitone higher, choristers, and that cat has got to come down from the tree” (Martin Kettle); “You share with the choirboys, Camilla. This is my umbrella” (Valerie Ganne).
As ever, the winner receives a prize of Fairtrade chocolate, courtesy of Divine Chocolate.
divinechocolate.com