The Grade I listed church[2] was gradually rebuilt in its current form by Sir Francis Dashwood, 1st Baronet and Baron Le Despenser.

The ball was reputed to be a meeting place for the Hellfire Club – it could seat 10, and was described by the author John Wilkes as “the best globe tavern I was ever in.” It has been suggested that Sir Francis Dashwood used a heliograph to signal through a porthole in the golden ball to his friend, John Norris (1721–1786), who had erected a tower, now known as the Camberley Obelisk, near his home at Hawley, Hampshire, 21 miles to the south.

The nave as remodeled by Dashwood has the appearance of a “very superb Egyptian hall” in a Vitruvian sense and is derived from Robert Wood’s prints of the ancient Temple of the Sun, Palmyra.

Throughout there is spectacular Rococo plasterwork and Dashwood provided fine new woodwork for the church, including Mahogany stalls for the clergy.

[5][3] There were rumours that the Hellfire Club, founded by Sir Francis Dashwood (1708–1781), met inside the golden ball,[5] but there is no evidence for that.

St Lawrence Church has been used as a backdrop and as part of important scenery elements in various popular TV shows and films such as Downton Abbey and major blockbusters.