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Meet the team

Lynn

Lynn’s favourite feature of Bury is the worn and shiny cobbled floor inside the Abbey gate. “For me, it conjures up the thousands of footsteps of the townspeople coming to the Abbey to pay their taxes or trade with the monks.”

Having spent most of her life as a professional theatre-maker, she loves to sing, and knit. A lot!

Her favourite thing about being a guide is when people who have lived locally for years discover something they never knew about the town.

Fun fact: “A few years ago I locked someone inside the Guildhall, good job they had the sense to climb out of a window and let me know it was open!”

Peta

Peta’s favourite feature of Bury is the Cathedral’s Millennium tower.

She enjoys tennis, gardening, playing in a recorder consort and swimming at Old Felixstowe. Brrrr!

Her favourite thing about being a guide is sharing her love of Bury’s beautiful architecture and history.

Fun fact: she won the Fastest Women’s Half Pint at Hampstead Beer Festival!

Martyn

Martyn’s favourite feature of Bury is the beautiful interior of St Mary’s Church

He is currently working on Written in Stone, an archive about names and inscriptions on walls and buildings.

His favourite thing about being a guide is meeting new people and telling them about our historic town.

Fun fact: he tells the most wonderful jokes (…or not!)

Mike

Mike’s favourite feature of Bury are the regular street markets plus other markets throughout the year.

When not guiding, he enjoys lepidoptery (butterflies and moths), gardening, meteorology and still trying to master the French language.

He loves meeting a broad range of interesting groups and clients and helping to bring the town to life for them to enhance their visit.

Fun fact: he appeared with Laura on Paul Daniels’ Every Second Counts, getting to the glorious final! He still signs autograph books.

Adrian

Adrian’s favourite feature of Bury is the Abbey of St Edmund.

Among his interests are walking football, watching cricket, dancing and Rupert Bear!

His favourite thing about being a guide is meeting new people and sharing the delights of Bury with them.

Fun fact: as an archaeologist in Cheshire he excavated Daresbury Parsonage, birthplace of Lewis Carroll.

Melanie

Melanie’s favourite features of Bury are the avenues of trees in the Great Churchyard.

She enjoys visiting museums and galleries in the UK and Europe and walking her dogs.

Her favourite thing about being a town guide is meeting interesting and enthusiastic visitors and helping them to become more familiar with our beautiful town.

Fun fact: Martha’s Vineyard, the Massachusetts island, was named after a Martha who was born and died in Bury St Edmunds. Baby daughter of Captain Bartholomew Gosnold, explorer and prime mover, who named the island Martha’s Vineyard in her memory in 1602.

John M

John’s favourite feature of Bury is the view down Abbeygate Street from the corner of the Buttermarket.

His interests include swimming (staying afloat), visiting places of worship and gardens, mowing and reading.

His favourite thing about guiding is the opportunity to meet people, and give them a view the past as they see the sights of the present.

Fun fact: despite appearances, he’s actually currently our oldest guide. “As part of training, we spent an evening in the Abbey Gardens. When we called it a day, we discovered we were locked in. With much laughter, we managed to climb over the wall into the Provost’s Garden and escaped into the churchyard trying to appear guiltless!”

John S

John’s favourite feature of Bury is any image of St Edmund (and there are a lot to be found in town).

When not guiding, he enjoys researching his family and local history, being a rickshaw rider and working as a fundraiser/volunteer.

His favourite part of guiding is learning new facts about the town he grew up in, and being able to show and tell others about the delights of Bury.

Fun fact: he has starred in CBeebies and Crimewatch!

Terry

Terry loves showing visitors that around every corner in Bury there is another historical building behind which there are fascinating tales – often of national and international significance, in addition to their local importance.

Terry’s hobbies are related to his interest in local history, currently being Historical advisor to the West Suffolk Hospital History Society as well as an active speaker. Travel also features strongly having made many friends whilst working Worldwide during a long career in industry.

Fun fact: In the early 1990s whilst on an internal Russian flight (with no seatbelts), watching in disbelief as a passenger lit a primus stove in the aisle to make tea!

Jules

As a native of Essex Jules fell in love with Bury St Edmunds, moving to the town in 2015.  With a degree in heritage management and having worked for the National Trust and English Heritage, you could say she is passionate about all things history!

A love of gardens means the Abbey Gardens is a favourite on the tour, whilst tales of The Clash playing in the 1970’s and the social highlife of the Georgian era appeal as part of the unique story Bury St Edmunds has to tell. 

Meeting people from around the world, as well as those very local, is one of her favourite things about being a tour guide.

Fun Fact: she has 3 black cats and knows about medicinal herbs – beware……….