Below are the ten most-viewed posts for the period 1 January 2026 to 31 March 2026[1]. Over this period, there were 17,662 page reads in total, of which the ten below constitute 53%, a significantly greater number than reported earlier[2].

Comment

The above posts are listed in descending order of number of page-views. These results are appear to be atypical, possibly a consequence of fewer percentage of page reads from the UK, and the greater percentage of the total page views in the “top ten” posts, supra. The following general observations may be made:

• Parochial Fees are a regular feature, and are based upon the Consumer Prices Index (CPI) for August which is reported by ONS in September, and eventually announced by the Church of England in December.
• Two of the above posts relate to events which, to us, were clearly “non-starters”: the substantial increase in burial fees; and the “poisoned chalice” appointment of an interim Bishop to the Diocese of Bangor, (not literally, obvs).
• There was significant opposition to an increase in burial fees, and General Synod voted overwhelmingly against the proposal. Whilst the proposal for an Interim Bishop of Bangor was prima facie a logical approach to the current impasse, the tightly drawn requirements and the associated circumstances militated again the appointment.
• Continuing interest in the post on the scattering of Ian Brady’s ashes appears to have been generated by the death of Ian Huntley at the maximum security HMP Frankland. After a trial at the Old Bailey in 2003, he was jailed for life with a recommended minimum term of 40 years for the “Soham murders”. However, apart from a passing reference to a Sun newspaper headline in February 2013, we did not cover the Soham case, although many of the principles related to the funeral arrangements (possession of the body, the need for secrecy) were similar.
• However, on 9 May 2026, the Independent carried the story Soham murderer Ian Huntley cremated in £265 eco-friendly coffin as taxpayers pick up funeral tab. For the curious, the article gives details of the arrangements[3].

[1]  i.e. those other than the “Home Page”, “Archives”, and “Index”. However, for the present analysis, these categories did not fall within the “top 10”.

[2] 20% for January to April in 2025 and ~12% for posts from 1 August 2024 to 4 July 2025.

[3] Huntley was cremated in a £265 eco-friendly coffin at a service attended by no mourners and was paid for by the taxpayer the MoJ has revealed it spent £1,915 on Huntley’s cremation, including: £625 for “professional services”; £275 for the transfer of his body from hospital; £65 for a cremation casket; and £265 for a “jute natural coffin”. £100 was also paid for staff attendance and supervision. The fee for the “direct unattended” cremation was £585.

Under the MoJ’s standard practice for covering basic funeral expenses, money is paid directly to the funeral director and does not cover the cost of wakes, headstones or burial plots Huntley’s ashes are to be returned to his mother as his next of kin.

Updated: 09 April 2026 at 16:52.