Church over Shakespeare's grave seeks funds to fight roof rot problem

LONDON -- Something is rotten in the city of Stratford-upon-Avon, England.

It's the beam that supports the roof over the grave of William Shakespeare, and the church where he lies is urgently seeking $80,000 for repairs.

The Rev. Martin Gorick, vicar of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, said the problem was discovered three weeks ago by workmen on the roof of the church, who were alarmed to find bits of the beam falling off.

The beam supports the roof of the chancel, the part of the church where the altar stands and where Shakespeare is buried.

"We were doing some urgent lead repairs anyway, and the workmen found the odd bit dropped off" into the chancel, Gorick said in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corp. on Monday.

A view of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford Upon Avon, England Monday, Sept. 21, 2009. The church where William Shakespeare was baptized and buried is seeking money to keep a roof over the bard's grave. It was recently discovered that the main beam in the Chancel was deteriorating faster than had been thought. Shakespeare's tomb is in the Chancel. The church has raised nearly 1 million pounds ($1.6 million) in the past 7 years for restoration work, and estimates that repairs to the beam will cost another 50,000 pounds ($81,000). (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

"It's safe to be here to visit, but it's pretty perilous to work on," he said.

The church has raised nearly $1.6 million in the past seven years for restoration work on the building, which is about 800 years old.

Shakespeare was baptized at Holy Trinity on April 26, 1564, and the church's burial register lists him as "Gulielimus, filius Johannes Shakspeare," (William, son of John Shakespeare.)

After a career writing and staging his plays in London, he retired to Stratford in 1611, and was buried on April 25, 1616. His wife, Anne Hathaway, also lies there.

Shakespeare was personally responsible for keeping the chancel in good repair after 1605, when he paid a sum of money to become a "lay rector," a position which also entitled him to a share of the tithe income of the parish.

The roof is seen in the Chancel of Holy Trinity Church in Stratford Upon Avon, England Monday, Sept. 21, 2009. The church where William Shakespeare was baptized and buried is seeking money to keep a roof over the bard's grave. It was recently discovered that the main beam in the chancel was deteriorating faster than had been thought. Shakespeare's tomb is in the Chancel. The church has raised nearly 1 million pounds ($1.6 million) in the past 7 years for restoration work, and estimates that repairs to the beam will cost another 50,000 pounds ($81,000). (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

He made a poor job of it: Within a few years of his death, the chancel was reported to be in a ruinous state.