In a scene more akin to a British farce than real life, a vicar from Lincoln faces being stripped of his holy orders after taking his bishop's £50,000 car while drunk and crashing it, writing off a vehicle belonging to the partner of a long-serving The Archers actress.
A Chaotic Evening and a Dramatic Arrest
Father Sion Hughes Carew, 40, was handcuffed and arrested in front of his own parishioners after the late-night incident, which left the bishop's official car wedged in a garden wall. The crash occurred just half a mile from Lincoln Cathedral and a mere five-minute walk from the vicar's own home.
The chain of events began on a Friday evening last month when Father Hughes Carew and Stephen Conway, the Bishop of Lincoln, were drinking together at the bishop's palace. The social gathering coincided with a special peal of bells being rung at a nearby church in honour of the vicar's birthday. Later that evening, an intoxicated Father Hughes Carew allegedly drove off from the palace – apparently bare-footed – in the bishop's year-old Kia Sportage.
The Crash and Its Aftermath
The joyride ended abruptly when the vicar crashed into a parked Skoda Octavia – not once, but twice. He then drove up a steep hill, appeared to stall, and subsequently reversed or rolled back into a garden wall and railings. The collision at 11pm was so loud that half the street emerged from their homes to find the bishop's car jammed into the remains of the wall.
The owner of the written-off £2,000 Skoda was 78-year-old carpenter Brian Meagher. Mr Meagher is the partner of actress Heather Bell, 81, who has played the character Clarrie Grundy on the BBC Radio 4 soap opera The Archers since 1979. Joking about the bizarre situation, Ms Bell said, ‘It’s the story of the actress and the bishop!’
At Lincoln Magistrates’ Court on October 30, Father Hughes Carew admitted to driving while almost three times the legal alcohol limit. He was banned from driving for two years, fined £873, and ordered to pay a surcharge of £349 and £85 in costs. His ban could be reduced by six months if he completes a safe-driving course.
Disciplinary Proceedings and Church Embarrassment
While parishioners at Father Hughes Carew's churches, All Saints’ Lincoln and St Mary-le-Wigford, have been told he is ill, the truth is he now faces a formal disciplinary process within the Church of England that could lead to him being defrocked. A Church of England source revealed the internal sentiment, stating, ‘People in the church are saying the bishop and Father Sion have been fools.’
The incident is deeply embarrassing for Bishop Conway, who was criticised in the Makin Review last November for previous failings. A spokesman for the Diocese of Lincoln stated, ‘The Bishop of Lincoln had no knowledge of the car being taken and did not give permission.’ Bishop Conway has refused to discuss how the convivial evening descended into such chaos.
Reflecting on the vicar's calm demeanour at the scene, Ms Bell noted, ‘the driver seemed so calm as he walked up and down on his phone the whole time – though he must have been terrified of the consequences.’ Mr Meagher offered a more direct judgement: ‘I would say it’s no way for a vicar to behave, but it’s no way for anyone to behave.’
