Suffolk Cathedral completes LEGO replica after decade-long build
The 200,000 brick replica helped raise thousands of pounds through public donations.
A LEGO replica of St Edmundsbury Cathedral has officially been completed, ten years after the first brick was laid.
The model, which contains 200,000 genuine LEGO bricks, was finished this month following a decade-long fundraising effort involving volunteers, visitors and cathedral staff. The last brick was officially placed today.
The project began in May 2016 after design company Bright Bricks approached the cathedral with the idea of creating a detailed replica to help raise money for its work in the community.
For every £1 donated, another brick was added to the build.
Sarah Friswell, who oversaw the project during her time as visitor experience manager at the cathedral and continues to volunteer there, described the completion as “such a sense of achievement”.
She said: “In the early days, of course, it was difficult to really see much progress because you have to start with a flat base and gradually build the walls up from the ground.
“If you’re only adding a brick per pound, sometimes those bricks are just one little square, and so it’s taken a very long time.
“We gradually could begin to see the form coming, the walls, the windows going in, and then when we got up to the roof height, that’s when questions started to be asked about whether people would still be able to see inside.”
The finished replica includes detailed features from inside the cathedral, including pews, radiators, light fittings, the bishop’s throne and even toilets built from LEGO.
Ms Friswell said: “It’s a complete replica of the cathedral in all its detail.
“There are pews inside. There are radiators, there are fire extinguishers, there are the light fittings, there’s everything.
“And this is what visitors have loved because you’ve just seen the whole building come to life.”
The project was completed in modules, with volunteers following specialist instructions created through computer modelling by Bright Bricks.
It's impact on the local community
More than 70 volunteers helped with the build over the ten years, ranging in age from eight to people in their nineties.
Ms Friswell paid tribute to those involved, saying the project would not have been possible without their dedication.
She said: “People have been really dedicated to it.
“My youngest volunteer, when he started helping, was eight, coming along with grandad to do LEGO building.
“The oldest volunteer who’s been on the project was a lady in her nineties, who sadly now has passed away, so she doesn’t get to see it finished.”
She added: “Without the visitor donations, it couldn’t happen, without the volunteers’ time, it couldn’t happen, and without the original inspiration of Bright Bricks, I guess, it couldn’t have happened.
“So it’s really hugely rewarding.”
The Very Reverend Joe Hawes, Dean of St Edmundsbury, said the model stood as a testament to the cathedral community after years of work and challenges, including the Covid pandemic.
He said: “When the LEGO Cathedral build began in May 2016, we could never have imagined the commitment it would take to reach the moment of adding the final brick.
“Within the ten years of building, we faced many challenges, instructions that were hard to read, keeping the volunteer rota full and a global pandemic.
“But this model now stands as a testament not just to craftsmanship, but to what our community can accomplish together.”
The model will remain on display inside the cathedral while longer-term plans are considered for its permanent home.