Stand under the enormous 13th century chancel arch and turn towards the east end and its great stained glass window. You’re looking at the chancel.

If the nave belonged to the congregation, the chancel belonged to the priest – or rather, his patron, Worcester Priory, later the cathedral. The chancel was the most holy part of the church, where the medieval mass was said and the choir sang.

Most ordinary folk weren’t allowed into this area in medieval times, and to keep it separate and special, a huge and ornate timber screen across the chancel arch divided it off from the nave. This was called the rood screen [R-O-O-D]. Rood is the old word for a cross. So, the rood screen was topped by a giant crucifix and statues of the Virgin Mary and St John, brightly coloured and visible to everyone in the church.

Look up above the pulpit on the left. Can you see a doorway high up in the wall? That’s the top of a spiral stair that led out onto a platform over the screen called the rood loft. The church organ was up there in medieval times, and the priest could preach from it, or the choir sing there. Nearly all rood screens and crosses were removed in the mid-16th century by Royal order, just leaving doorways like this as reminders.

Step into the chancel. The three steps between the chancel arch and the east wall were to lift the altar up so that everyone could see it, and they were required by church law. The pretty mosaic floor and altar are early 20th century gifts to the church, but the chancel has another older secret.

Look behind the large wooden chair to the left of the altar. The narrow vertical slot in the stone wall is a hagioscope – literally a holy viewer. Through the Victorian door beside it lies the vestry, the room where the clergy leading a service put on their vestments, or service clothes. In medieval times, however, this was a private chapel for one of the local big families, the Staffords. It had its own outside door and there was no way into it from the main church. It also had its own priest, who said masses for the family. To make sure he said the important parts of the mass at the same time as the priest in the main church, a hagioscope was cut through the wall so that they could match their words and movements.

Before we leave the chancel, stand back and look at the great east window. This dates from 1859, when the church was restored, and it shows the life of Jesus as a sort of cartoon strip, from his birth at the bottom to his death and resurrection at the top. Take a moment to follow the story and admire the vibrant colours of the glass.

That large ornate arch opposite the organ is a chantry chapel. Let’s go and find out about it.