London’s Big Ben to Fall Silent Next Week for Four Years
- Parliament’s clock and tower undergoing major restoration
- Palace of Westminster needs 5.7 billion-pound renovation
A bus casts light trails as it passes the Houses of Parliament and Elizabeth Tower.
Photographer: Luke MacGregor/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Big Ben will fall silent for four years starting Monday Aug. 21 to allow for renovation works to take place on Parliament’s bell, clock and tower, the symbol of London.
The 13.7-ton bell in the Elizabeth Tower must stop ringing to ensure the safety of workers on the restoration project, the House of Commons said on Monday in an emailed statement. It chimes every 15 minutes and has rung out largely uninterrupted for 157 years. The last stoppage for maintenance was in 2007, and refurbishment works previously silenced the bell from 1983 to 1985. It was also muted for former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s funeral in 2013.