Q&A: Len McMillan on the Abbey gutters

How many gutters does the Abbey have? 

It’s hard to put a figure on it, but there’s at least 24. Not all of them are accessible. 

Why is it necessary to constantly clear them? 

All it takes is one little blockage and water just flies into the Abbey. I didn’t do one once and the water just cascaded… then the plaster or the stone started to crumble and so we had to get scaffolding up there to make sure all that was OK.

You have to keep on top of it. When some of the traps get blocked, we have to get abseilers over to unblock them.  

Seriously… (there is a very steep drop below us) 

The man who does it loves it. He abseils down the front of the Abbey all the time. But to stop that happening we just need to do a lot of sweeping and taking rubbish away.

Once one of the gutters got blocked and a load of water started pouring like a river into the chapter house. That wasn’t a good moment!  

What’s the worst thing you’ve found? 

It’s mostly dead pigeons, and the odd bird’s leg. Someone else saw a woodpecker. There’s a peregrine falcon who hunts pigeons and one of his favourite ‘dining rooms’ is up on our tower. He eats up there and then just drops everything below him. 

There’s also Rufus, a hawk we have on loan. He’s quite famous and has his own Instagram account, so we’re lucky to have him. We have to put Rufus away if the peregrine falcon is around, as they’d go for each other rather than the pigeons. 

Where does most of the other debris come from? 

There are three gigantic plane trees that are now at roof level and most of the debris in the gutters comes from them shedding their seeds and fluff and leaves. They get matted together when they get damp, and when they dry out it’s like concrete.

When a storm happens, it becomes resistant to water. We’d like to lift the crowns on those trees, but there are preservation orders on them.  

Things are better in winter for about 2 months, but then it all starts up again. It’s a constant war on debris. Oh, the glamour. To be honest I actually like the trees. I protest about them, but they have given me a good living for 20 years.  

How are your gutters at home?  

In 20 years, I’ve never had to clean them. It’s just this place that has the problems.  

What do you enjoy most about your job? 

I like being out on the roofs. I like doing my own thing and looking out at all the architecture. I feel proud of it. It’s quite a pleasure, even though it’s grungy work. I feel like I’ve done my bit.

To see Rufus the hawk in his various adventures follow @rufusthehawk on Instagram.

Interview by Maddy Fry. Photography by Simon Dutson.