St George's Church, Portland

St George’s Church stands on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, built between 1754 and 1766 from Portland stone. It replaced the older St Andrew’s Church, which had become unsafe because of landslips and cracks in the cliffs. A committee of local people decided a new church would be better than repairing the old one. The building has a tower, nave, transepts and an apse, with a plain dome over the crossing. Its design echoes the work of Christopher Wren, especially in the tower. The church is one of Dorset’s finest 18th-century churches and is Grade I listed. It was designed by Thomas Gilbert, a local architect and quarry merchant who also built nearby houses. After falling into disrepair in the early 20th century, a group called the Friends of St George’s Church restored it in the 1960s. The Churches Conservation Trust now cares for the building, which is no longer used for regular worship. Inside, visitors find a spacious interior with simple windows in two tiers and broad stone frames. The tower rises above the crossing, and the apse at the east end contains the altar. Services are still held twice a year, on St George’s Day and Christmas Day. The nearby George Inn, once the parish clerk’s house, adds to the historic setting. The church and its surroundings offer a quiet place to see fine architecture and Portland’s stone landscape.