‘We need people to recognise the urgency’: Peterborough Cathedral faces financial ruin

Chris Dalliston: ‘There has been a huge rise in the cost of utilities – our bill has gone up by more than £100,000 a year across the estate.’ Photograph: Linda Nylind/The Guardian

Beneath the breathtaking oak ceiling of Peterborough Cathedral, on which images of kings, saints, bishops and a monkey riding a goat were painted nine centuries ago, the Very Rev Chris Dalliston pondered how to keep this magnificent edifice afloat in the face of financial calamity.

Dalliston, the cathedral’s de facto CEO in a dog collar, has done his best to avert the looming crisis. The cathedral, built as a monastery in the 12th century, has become a venue for concerts, banquets, exhibitions, corporate events and even a controversial Ibiza-themed party night as well as daily religious services. Assets have been sold or rented.