Church of St Thomas à Becket

A church has been on this site since the 13th century. It was dedicated to St Thomas à Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury. The present structure was built in the 15th century. The building was restored in the 18th century, when its walls were rebuilt in brick and the roof covered with red tiles. By the 19th century, few dwellings remained in Fairfield parish. Fairfield village has been deserted since the early 1930s. The church has survived intact and is now part of the civil parish which includes the villages of Brookland, Brenzett and Snargate. It was designated a Grade I listed building in 1957.

The small church, located on Romney Marsh near the abandoned village of Fairfield, stands alone in a field surrounded by water-filled ditches. There is no burial ground. In England's Thousand Best Churches, Simon Jenkins calls the church of St Thomas à Becket, "one of the best-known churches in Kent, if only for its evocative isolation. It appears as if deposited by the tide on a mound in Romney Marsh." Until the 20th century, the church could be reached only by boat. Today, it can be reached by footpath. The layout of the building consists of a nave, small chancel, tower and south porch. The chancel has two timber-framed bays, A wood-shingled bell turret is situated at the west end of the…

The church has featured in the 2012 film Great Expectations and television shows including Great Expectations (2011), and Parade's End (2012).