Holy fire: Vicar's very British response to setting himself ablaze

'Oh dear, I've just caught fire.' Photo / Twitter

A British vicar's online sermon got a little hot under the collar, when he preached too close to the candles.

Simon Beach, vicar of St Budeaux Parish Church in Plymouth, was conducting his sermon online when his shirt touched the candles burning next to him and caught fire.

For a man whose shirt was ablaze, he reacted surprisingly calmly, simply saying: "Oh dear, I've just caught fire."

The video was posted by his nephew to Twitter, where it went viral as people laughed over his calm demeanour in the face of such a stressful situation.

This is hands down the most British reaction to BEING ON FIRE! 😂🤣🏆🇬🇧🔥

— Lloyd Brown (@lloydinand) March 21, 2020

"This is hands down the most British reaction to being on fire," one person commented.

The footage surfaced as the Church of England asked for public worship to be suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The vicar was not harmed in the making of the video but the same cannot be said for what was reportedly his favourite sermon jumper.