Simon Jenkins 1000 Best Churches

Possibly the best Gothic parish church in England, the cathedral-sized Beverley Minster spans the Early English, Decorated and Perpendicular Gothic periods.

Formerly a monastery and a cathedral, the spectacular cream-colored Bath Abbey (c. 1500) now serves as the parish church of Bath. The interior is especially famed for its fan vaulting.

Fairford Church is an exceptionally harmonious and well-preserved Cotswolds church. Funded by a wool merchant and consecrated in 1497, it boasts the most complete set of medieval stained glass in the UK.

Known as the Boston Stump or simply The Stump from time immemorial (for unknown reasons), Boston's parish church is a Grade-I listed building with the tallest tower in England. Inside are 62 medieval misericords.

According to tradition, Selby Abbey was the earliest Benedictine monastery in the north of England, founded in 1069. Today it is a Grade-I listed parish church featuring Norman and Decorated Gothic architecture and 14C stained glass.

Roman Catholic Church. 1841-6 by A.W.N. Pugin for the Earl of Shrewsbury.

The Collegiate Church of St Mary in Warwick has a Norman crypt and 14C chancel; the distinctive tower, nave, and transepts were rebuilt in 1697-1704 following a fire, supervised by Sir Christopher Wren. It is a Grade-I listed building.

Consecrated by Bishop Bronescombe in 1260. Altered and added to by Bishop Grandison circa 1330.

Now an Anglican parish church, Dorchester Abbey was originally a cathedral founded by St. Birinus (in 635 CE) and later became an Augustinian abbey.

Beverley's parish church is an impressive building founded in the 12th century and funded by the merchant guilds. Highlights include the painted minstrels' capital and the chancel ceiling depicting the kings of England through the 15th century.

Pershore Abbey was founded in the 7th century and came under the Benedictine rule around the 10th century. Only about half of the abbey church survives, which is now used as a parish church.