The parish of Thorpe (given the suffix "next Haddiscoe" to distinguish from other of the same name in Norfolk) next Haddiscoe lies in southeastern Norfolk roughly 6 miles north of the Suffolk market town of Beccles. In a county full of small parishes this is one of the smaller, a circular patch of barely 900 acres embedded between Haddiscoe and Thurlton parishes. Of Thorpe itself there is barely a register on the map, a cluster of farms and cottages lying on the edges of the grazing marshes that run down to the winding course of the River Waveney and the border with Suffolk. Thorpe's location at the edge of the flood-plain formed by the  merging of most of the rivers of the area gave it a varied economy, typical cereals and beet on the lightly higher ground whilst the extensive marshland supported reed thatch harvesting, wildfowling and, once drained of winter flooding, grazing on rich alluvial soils. What passes as a village sits at the 10 metres contour, a level enabling avoidance of most flood heights, but close enough for the easy exploitation of the wetland riches.

St Matthias' church sits at the junction of Church & Yarmouth Roads. The presence of a round tower is usually indicative of an early church and St Matthias is very early indeed. Pevsner indicates the curiously set small windows in alternating positions as being Saxon work and these are probably from a pre-Conquest date, the upper stages with the bells are only slightly later and Norman Romanesque in style, probably 12th century. Even earlier than the tower, and possibly one of the earliest church features in the county, is a blocked circular window high on the western wall of the nave, Pevsner believes this to pre-date the tower. It sits within a nave that was built/rebuilt in a contemporary period to the addition of the bell-stages to the tower. The main body of work shows windows from all of the subsequent periods of fashion, 13th century lancets sitting alongside Perpendicular changes of the 14th & 15th centuries with a 14th century Decorated style southern porch for variety. The chancel was demolished and rebuilt in brick in 1838 and a further Victorian restoration replaced the roofing as well refreshing many of the windows. Church Road is narrow so parking should be done with consideration, the churchyard sits behind a raised grassy and tree-covered bank with white painted gates for entry set just into the lane of North End. Whilst the churchyard is relatively compact there are no obstacles for the photographer.