Stand in the right spot in Old Portsmouth and the Cathedral Church of St Thomas of Canterbury seems to grow straight out of the cobbles. It is one of the oldest buildings in the city and one of the quietest places in it, a working cathedral with more than eight hundred years of history under its roof and the sea almost at its door. Entry is by donation, so it is also one of the easiest grand days out in Portsmouth to just walk into.
Eight centuries in one building
The church began life around 1180 as a chapel dedicated to Thomas Becket, the murdered Archbishop of Canterbury, built by the Augustinian canons of Southwick on a new town by the harbour. It has been added to, knocked about by the Civil War and patched up ever since, so a walk from one end to the other is a walk through the centuries. When Portsmouth became a diocese in its own right in 1927 the old parish church was raised to a cathedral, and the nave was completed only in the 1990s, which is why the building reads as medieval at one end and almost modern at the other.
What to look for inside
The pleasure of the inside is how light and calm it is, pale stone and clear glass rather than gloom. The oldest part, the chancel and quire at the east end, is the medieval heart, while the airy nave to the west is the newest. Being a navy city, the cathedral is thick with maritime memory, from memorials to sailors lost at sea to the golden weathervane known as the Golden Barque riding the tower above. “It is the most peaceful corner of the whole city,” one regular visitor wrote, and on a weekday morning with the organ practising, it is hard to disagree.
A cathedral still at work
This is not a museum piece but a living church, with daily services, a strong choral tradition and a busy calendar of concerts, carol services and community events through the year. Visitors are welcome to look round, sit a while or light a candle, and the suggested donation of a few pounds goes straight into keeping the place standing. Because services and events sometimes take over the building, it is worth a quick check of the day’s opening before you make a special trip.
Getting there and visiting
The cathedral sits in the heart of Old Portsmouth, a short walk from both Gunwharf Quays and Guildhall Square, with the Camber quay and the Hot Walls just beyond it. Admission is by donation, with around five pounds suggested per person. There is no cafe on site, but the pubs and tea rooms of Old Portsmouth are a two-minute stroll, and the seafront is right there for afterwards. Street parking in Old Portsmouth is limited, so the bus or a longer walk from Gunwharf is often easier.
Make a morning of Old Portsmouth
The cathedral is best enjoyed as one stop on a slow loop of the oldest part of the city rather than a trip on its own. Pair it with a wander round Old Portsmouth and the Point, a climb of the Round Tower and a look at the boats in the Camber, and you have an easy half day that costs almost nothing. It slots neatly into a round of free things to do in Portsmouth, and the harbour wall outside is as good a place as any to finish, watching the ferries slide out past the Round Tower towards the open sea.
