Ah Spaw, I agree with you totally there... although I've found that those good old fashioned church pews are far better than any concrete stairwell for amplification purposes.. the whole pew acts like a giant sound box so a good strong fart can be audible right at the back (or the front) of the church.

Had a bishop visiting once... they get their own special chair. The chair in our church at that time was a huge 17th Century thing that looked like a commode - had a big box under the seat for storing hymn books and stuff in. Made the best accoustic sounding box you ever heard! Ever seen a bishop turn as purple as his robes?!

LTS