Reddit users, a demographic once notorious for their militant atheism, have rallied around a small church in Eryri (Snowdonia) in an eccentric online competition that lasted for over a month.
Hosted on the r/terriblemaps Reddit community, users were presented with a map of the world, shaded in two colours - Europe, Africa and the Americas being one colour, and Asia and Oceania another.
The game was simple. Users voted to eliminate one half of the map, until only one location remained.
Having removed Asia and Oceania from existence, users proceeded to vote out the Americas, Africa and so on, until the final round in which St Mary’s Church, Beddgelert, found itself up against “buildings north of Church of St Mary”.
As the contest continued a pro-St Mary’s faction seems to have emerged and may even have helped sway the result, particularly in the final rounds of the competition.
Following the announcement of the winner, some Reddit users questioned why the competition had not continued.
The lack of a floor plan for the church may have been one reason, but the organiser suggested that asking voters to pick a particular gravestone from the cemetery might be taking things too far.
Asked whether this meant St Mary’s Church is now officially “the best place in the world”, the organiser said, “That's up to you to decide, but it does seem my very scientific method has found a nice candidate.”
The local vicar, Rev Kim Williams said, "We were quite surprised to learn that St Mary's Church had become the focus of an online competition but it’s nice to see so many people speaking positively about Beddgelert and Eryri.
“I might be biased saying this but it definitely deserved to win! St Mary's has served the local community for generations. We are always pleased to welcome visitors who come to enjoy the village, the landscape and the church."
