The parish of Our Lady of Sorrows & St Bridget of Sweden Isleworth is celebrating a centenary this year. The present church was opened in May 1909. But the Isleworth Catholic community is much older. It grew out of a domestic chaplaincy of the family of the Earls of Shrewsbury who owned a mansion in Isleworth from 1675, which some sources give as the origin of the parish. Surviving records show that a small community was certainly worshipping in the chapel within the mansion by the 1740s. This makes the Isleworth community one of the oldest in the diocese.

A pictorial DVD of the Centenary Year is on sale now at the Church. A brief slideshow is now available to download here (1.2mb wmv file format)

Its chapel and priest served not only the household and the immediate locality but much of West Middlesex and nearby parts of Surrey.

In the Nineteenth Century, although new missions opened in the surrounding areas, the Isleworth community still outgrew the original chapel in the mansion and a larger replacement was built on the same site in 1854. When a new Rector, Father Eric Green, was appointed in 1906, he quickly decided that a new and larger building would have to be a priority. He was fortunate to have the support of three generous ladies, the Misses Saunders who provided the land and Mrs Macdonnell, who met the cost of construction.

The new church provided much needed additional space. It also represented the emergence, literally, of the Isleworth Catholics from behind the high walls that surrounded the old chapel. The new church had a dramatic façade and was located on a prominent site at a main road junction. It was designed by E. Doran Webb, the architect of the Birmingham Oratory, in the Italian Renaissance style, so there could be no doubt that the community was looking towards Rome for inspiration.

In the Twentieth Century the community continued to expand. Daughter churches were opened in St. Margaret’s and Osterley but even so, in the 1950s, the Isleworth church had four well-attended Masses on Sundays and the parish priest had the support of three curates.

The parish has continued to prosper; though today there is only one resident priest, assisted by a retired colleague. Like many parishes in the London area, the Isleworth congregation is remarkable for its diversity - a recent informal survey revealed over 30 countries of origin. Housing development and good Catholic primary and secondary schools have attracted many new members.

The Mass to inaugurate the Centenary celebrations was held on Sunday the 25^th January at 10.00 am to coincide with the feast of the Conversion of St Paul. A full programme of faith and social events is planned for the year, including an anniversary Mass on Monday 4^th May and a parish pilgrimage; all being organized by members of the congregation.

The centenary is seen an opportunity to look forward as well as back and to renew our faith and commitment to Christ and His Church. Particular emphasis is being given to encouraging greater involvement by the laity in the work of the parish. For further details on the history of the parish, please contact Stuart Bagnall on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Stuart Bagnall, 10 February 2009