By Elizabeth Broughton

Last updated 10:11, Friday, 28 November 2008

CARLISLE Cathedral is set to be lit up in the new year thanks to four spectacular chandeliers being fitted at a cost of £200,000.

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Light and heavy: Workmen busy fitting chains to the circular iron chandelier. Four will be in place next year

And the first of the impressive iron creations was hoisted into place last week as part of a trial run.

The chandeliers form the second phase of a project to relight the cathedral, and it has taken three years for architect Nicholas Rank and his team to get to this stage.

Mr Rank, who works for Manchester-based firm Buttress, Fuller, Alsop, Williams Architects, said: “The project started about three years ago when we first started planning it.

“We worked on the design for more than a year.

“It’s not so much the length of time it takes to design it, but if you carry out any alterations in the cathedral you need approval and that takes a long time.”

Suspended by chains from the cathedral roof, the four iron chandeliers will light the nave and main entrance of the cathedral.

And deciding exactly what would work best to light the 900-year-old cathedral posed a challenge.

Mr Rank said: “We don’t have that many very good places where we can put lights and things in a building like this without them looking very odd and unpleasant.

“I wanted something that would hopefully be attractive, complement the building, and get the light where we need it to be.”

The chandeliers are constructed from circular iron and measure approximately two metres in diameter. They are half a metre tall.

They are due to be put in place in mid-January – but anyone hoping to get a sneak peek in the cathedral before then will be out of luck.

Mr Rank said: “The chandelier that was put up has now gone – it was just a trial to see if it worked properly before the rest are made.

“If anyone was to go down to the cathedral today all they would see is lots of electricians.”

When they are finally put in place, shades will be used to cover the bare light bulbs to complete the design.

And Mr Rank hopes that they will meet the approval of those who use the cathedral.

He added: “In the end, we do know that these things are going to be very noticeable and people will have a strong view about whether they like them or not.

“We quite deliberately designed them so that hopefully they are seen to be attractive.”