London’s Big Ben will soon be Ready for the Big Reveal

Most conversations about London are almost incomplete without a mention of the Big Ben or more formally, the Elizabeth Tower. And for about three years the clock tower has remained silent owing to the construction happening. And with the arrival of 2022, the new look for the clock tower also arrives. 

With intricate details, glass panels, Prussian blue hands and numbers, the clock tower is just ready in time to ring in New Years and the chime will be heard after three years. Although the public got to see one of its faces in late November, the complete renovated structure will be ready for public viewing by December 31. 

Big Ben's restoration dials up a notch 🕣

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This timelapse shows our team’s amazing work removing scaffolding from the Elizabeth Tower's East Dial in just five hours.

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— UK Parliament (@UKParliament) September 1, 2021

The Neo-Gothic style clock tower is situated on the banks of the Thames river since 1859 and has withstood the World War II bombings as well. With the renovations, this over century-old clock tower will now also have hour hands made of gun metal weighing 300 kg. 

The signature bongs have been silenced since 2017, but the clock will chime 12 times at midnight to ring in the New Year and for the last time with its current temporary electric mechanism before the original mechanism —with four quarter bells — is restored early next year. The original Victorian era mechanism was removed — in order to protect it from dust and debris that the renovation would bring along — and transported to a specialist company for the cleaning and repairing of its more than 1,000 working pieces.