A village church has been deemed a 'nuisance' and forced to silence its chiming clock after being slapped with a council order - following 'a ridiculous villager complaint'.
St Michael's in Mytholmroyd, West Yorkshire, was stunned to receive an abatement notice about its beloved clock bells.
The church was ordered to silence the chiming between 11pm and 7am after being notified of a complaint from a disgruntled resident of the proud village.
Traditionally the clock - a staple in the village for up to 177 years - has rung out the full Westminster chimes, with four quarter bells that chime every 15 minutes and a bell that strikes on the hour.
A £2,500 device would be needed to limit the bells to only chiming at night - so in order to comply with the Calderdale Council order, the bells have temporarily fallen silent for the first time in more than a century.
