See Sussex vicars as never before and watch them take a twirl in tutus

By Elaine Hammond
Published 25th Sep 2019, 12:18 BST
Sussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest RowSussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest Row
Sussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest Row
Five fun and feisty female vicars in Sussex have had a twirl in tutus to support Stand Up to Cancer, a joint fundraising campaign from Cancer Research UK and Channel 4.

They surprised shoppers in Shoreham with their antics and had a good old laugh as they did a conga around St Mary de Haura Church.

Ann Waizeneker, Helen Rose, Emma Ham-Riche, Angela Martin and Lisa Barnett were ready to make fools of themselves in support of anyone dealing with cancer, including their colleague, the Rev Pauline Ingram, associate vicar of Maresfield and Nutley.

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The Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach, said: "It's so important that we all do something to see if we can beat this terrible disease, particularly as now one in two people are affected by it.

Sussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest RowSussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest Row
Sussex vicars from left, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston; the Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean; the Rev Ann Waizeneker, vicar at St Mary's and Church of the Good Shepherd on Shoreham Beach; the Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustines in Scaynes Hill; and the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest Row

"We as vicars see that a lot because of members of our congregation and our colleagues as well. Several we know have cancer and some others are in remission, thank God, because of the research.

"So, it is good to bring hope that we can do something about this and that is why we are proud to stand up to cancer."

The charity is asking people to dress up in a funny, unusual or unpredictable way to raise money for research.

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The Rev Helen Rose, vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Woodingdean, the Rev Angela Martin, vicar of Holy Trinity in Forest Row, The Rev Lisa Barnett, vicar at St Augustine’s in Scaynes Hill, the Rev Emma Ham-Riche, assistant curate of St Mary the Virgin in East Preston with Kingston, and the Rev Ann Waizeneker were happy to step up to answer their prayers.

They teamed their clerical collars with bright orange tutus and stripy socks before embracing the challenge with gusto, raising a few eyebrows around the ancient church in Shoreham town centre.

Their colleague Pauline was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia, a blood and bone marrow cancer, in 2015. Initially, she was told it was a slow-growing cancer that was best left untreated, so she should concentrate on living her life.

Pauline said: "This was very frightening, not easy to understand or to do."

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