The church of St Martin, Bilborough, is the featured church for July 2023. Bilborough is now a western suburb of Nottingham but vestiges of the old village remain.
It consists of a west tower, nave, south porch, and chancel. A substantial extension was built on the north side of the chancel in 1972.
The building was restored twice in the 19th century: in 1833 and in 1887-8. Further restoration work was carried out over the period 2009-2014.
The church largely dates from the 14th century. The south porch with a crocketed ogee canopy over the entrance (repeated inside around the inner doorway), the square-headed traceried windows of the chancel and the narrow, pointed tower arch all date from this period.
The two-stage embattled tower is later, i.e. c.1450. The east and west windows are Perpendicular in design.
A doorway in the north wall of the nave and a Priest’s door in the south wall of the chancel are both blocked.
A large blocked arch in the north nave wall suggests a former north chapel in this location.
The church is notable for murals painted in 1946 by Evelyn Gibbs on the east wall of the chancel. They depict the Angel Gabriel informing Mary that she will give birth to Jesus, the Son of God. The background scene shows Bilborough church and village. When the church was extended in 1972 the upper sections of the murals were concealed by a suspended wooden ceiling and the lower sections painted over with emulsion. The murals were uncovered and restored as part of the ‘Hidden Treasures’ project in 2014.
Part of a monument to Edmund Helwys who died in 1590 is fixed to the south chancel wall. His son was Thomas Helwys (c.1575-1616), who helped to set up the first English Baptist Church at Spitalfields in London in 1613.