![]() ![]() Its chimes are used at the beginning of many TV and radio news programs, a tradition that dates back to 1923. His nickname was Big Ben.īig Ben is Britain’s most important clock. The second man was Benjamin Caunt, who was the heavyweight boxing champion of 1841. He commissioned the new Houses of Parliament to be built, and he was also a very large man. ![]() Why is it called Big Ben? No-one is quite sure, but it was named after one of two men who were both known as Big Ben at the time the clock was built. The other 4 bells are called ‘quarter bells’, because they chime every fifteen minutes, or every quarter of an hour. If it is five o’clock, the hammer strikes it five times. Big Ben is the biggest bell, and every hour a hammer strikes the time on it. The clock first chimed its famous chimes on 31 st May, 1859. You can see the clock in the top picture, and the bell in the bottom picture. We also say Big Ben when we refer to the whole clock tower as well. Watrobski added that once this round of work is finished, “the building will be sound and secure for the next 60 years or so.Big Ben is actually the name of the enormous bell inside the clock of the Houses of Parliament. “But you know at the end of the day all buildings have to be serviced," he said. The clock tower - also commonly called Big Ben, but formally named the Elizabeth Tower - is one of London’s most-photographed buildings.ĭuring the repair work, scaffolding will obscure parts of the tower, and the clock faces will be covered at times.Īdam Watrobski, principal architect at the Houses of Parliament, said authorities are well aware of how much interest the bell and the tower generate. The sound of the 13.5 UK tonne (15.1 US tonne, 13.7 metric tonne) bell became associated with Britain around the globe through World War II radio news broadcasts. ![]() ![]() The bell is not due to resume regular timekeeping until 2021, though it will be heard on special occasions such as New Year’s Eve. Labour lawmaker Stephen Pound said he and a few other legislators planned to stand under the clock tower “with bowed heads" as the final bongs sounded.īig Ben has been silenced for repairs before, most recently in 2007, but this stretch is by far the longest. ![]()
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