New tour of St Columba's Long Tower Church in Londonderry opens
- Published
Fr Gerard Mongan and Darinagh Boyle say the tour will give people a greater appreciation of Long Tower Church
A new audio and visual self-guided tour of St Columba's Long Tower Church in Londonderry is aiming to attract more tourists to the historic site.
The multi-lingual guided tour was launched on Tuesday and is narrated by the Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown.
The tour, which is in English, Irish and Italian, talks of the history of the church that opened back in 1783.
Fr Gerard Mongan said the tour will help give people a deeper appreciation of the church.
The self-guided audio and video experience takes about 20 minutes to complete
"This is a magnificent building which is so dear to so many people in Derry and beyond," Fr Mongan told the BBC's The North West Today.
"The tour is a step-by-step journey through the paintings, artefacts and architecture of this sacred space.
"It will be bringing alive everything that is so appealing and so beautiful in Long Tower Church."
The church opened back in 1783
Tourism and engagement officer Darinagh Boyle said the tour will offer a different experience for visitors to the city and region.
"This has been a site of Christian worship for 1,500 years," Ms Boyle has said.
"That faith goes back right back to St Columba and the tour tells the story of Columba and celebrates Columba.
"We talk of influencers today, but this was a man who brought a culture to this part of the world, Scotland and England and it became the dominant culture for 700 to 800 years after that."
Mayor of Derry and Strabane District Council Patricia Logue said the new tour is a fantastic resource for the church which is one of the city's most historic and much-loved buildings.
"As well as having the opportunity to take in the beauty of the building itself, visitors can find out more about its rich history and important role this sacred space has had in shaping local worship, culture and heritage over the centuries," Ms Logue said.