In 1890, Revd John Fenwick Kitto founded a new church publication, The Monthly Messenger. Renamed St Martin’s Review in 1919, it went far beyond parish notices: it was full of art and poetry alongside social, political, and theological commentary, often with famous contributors like George Bernard Shaw, Lytton Strachey, and Vera Brittain. It was sold nationwide in WH Smiths, had a print run of up to 10,000 copies per month, and at one point boasted a larger readership than The Spectator.
A Broad, Broadcast Message
St Martin’s has had a long tradition of extending its message beyond its four walls: Revd Zachary Pearce’s sermon from the 1726 consecration service was printed and distributed from ‘The Pavement of St Martin’s Lane’.
The first service broadcast from St Martin’s was in 1895, through the Electrophone – a telephone-like device allowing people to listen into services. This was another idea of Revd Kitto, who also founded The Review, which ran for 115 years.
In 1922, the BBC was looking for a church that would regularly broadcast services but faced opposition from clergy, who declared it a ‘scandalous’ and ‘sensational method’. Revd Dick Sheppard took a different view, and on Sunday 6 January 1924, at 6:15pm, the BBC broadcast its first service from St Martin-in-the-Fields.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, St Martin’s moved its services online. It then decided to keep live streaming. Around 85 worshippers attend Morning Prayer online, and 5000 attend the weekly Great Sacred Music service alongside approximately 200 onsite. The ‘Being With’ course, which began as an in-person introduction to faith, also thrived by adapting to a virtual setting. It is now its own charity with an international reach.