Comedians' atheist church is evicted

The atheist movement started by comedians Sanderson Jones and Pippa Evans has been kicked out of its venue on Church-owned land.

The Sunday Assembly had run four ‘services’ at The Nave, a converted church in Islington, North London, but have been evicted only two weeks before their next one.

The building is on land owned by the Anglican Archdeacon of Hackney, but is run by the secular St Paul’s Steiner School. However Jones said he understood that the move was not driven by the Church, but a ‘small faction’ within the school who decided that The Sunday Assembly ‘was antithetical to their own ethos’.

The school’s mission statement says it wants children to be ‘creative authors of their own lives, and sculptors of the planet’s future; free and able to pursue their chosen path in life’, while the Sunday Assembly’s motto is: ‘Live better, help often and wonder more’.

However, St Paul’s Steiner Gary Bridgewood claimed the Assembly had simply outgrown the space.

He said: ‘Sanderson is a wonderful and inspirational person and we are truly regretful that they have so swiftly outgrown The Nave.  We have a maximum capacity for 200 people; the Sunday Assembly is regularly drawing crowds of up to 500.’

Chortle understands that this reasoning was not previously given to the Sunday Assembly.

In a statement, the group said: ‘The news of the eviction came only two weeks before the next event and after the school had agreed to host it. Sadly the committee members who took against the godless congregation didn’t spell out the precise reason for their disapproval.’

Jones blamed ‘primary school politics power play - like a low rent version of The Thick Of It’ and added: ‘It is such a shame that it happened like that. We loved The Nave and really enjoyed being part of the community.’

The next show, on May 5, has found a temporary new home at the Conway Hall in Holborn. Meanwhile Evans has put out an appeal for a permanent home.

She said: ‘A deconsecrated church with just the right level of shabby chic was perfect. If anyone else can suggest some venues we’d love to hear about them. We’re homeless. Help!’

The Sunday Assembly has proved a popular movement, with new branches in Exeter, Southend-on-Sea, Bristol, Brighton and even Melbourne coming soon. Almost 500 people have expressed an interest in starting their own regular meetings.

Meanwhile a ‘mysterious benefactor’ has promised to fund the movement to the tune of £10,000, and a 40-date tour is being planned for the autumn.

Jones said: ‘I swear to God, it's on the verge of becoming full blown movement.The Lord works in mysterious ways...’

The May 5 event at Conway Hall has the theme of ‘play’ and features guest talks from Marie Foulton, who runs the Wild Rumpus indie games night that turns video games into physical activities, and games designer Rob Davis.

Published: 25 Apr 2013