AFP, published Friday, November 11, 2022 at 04:43
To get as close to Big Ben as possible, you need earplugs and noise-cancelling headphones to protect your eardrums. And when the 13.7 ton bell rings, you can feel the vibrations in your chest.
After five long years of renovation, the world’s most famous clock officially wakes up on Sunday and will once again tell the time to Londoners.
The emblematic bell that dominates the British Parliament will thus return to its usual rhythm after the careful cleaning of more than 1,000 parts that compose it.
In August 2017, more than a thousand people gathered outside Parliament to listen devoutly to the final 12 chimes of Big Ben and the four other – smaller – bells that accompany it. Some even shed a tear, believing they were losing part of their city.
Many should gather again on Sunday at 11:00 GMT to hear this symbol of London ring out. The four-bell chime then chimes every quarter of an hour and Big Ben every hour, as it did 158 years before its renovation.
The date coincides with “Remembrance Sunday,” which is celebrated on the Sunday after November 11 to celebrate the Armistice of World War I.
In five years, thanks to a backup electric mechanism, the clock has chimed on a few rare occasions, most recently at the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, who died on September 8th.
At the top of the Elizabeth Tower – 96 meters high – the bells are protected by an outer net to prevent bats and pigeons from falling into the bell tower.
There’s a spectacular view of London from up there, but the three watchmakers responsible for the smooth running of Big Ben don’t have time to enjoy it.
Ian Westworth, 60, and his colleagues are too busy completing the final tests and making sure everything is working properly after the £80million (€91million) refurbishment.
– London is calling –
“It’s the sound of London that’s back,” the watchmaker told AFP on a morning tour of the tower.
“The bells rang during the wars,” he marvels, underscoring the magnitude of the city’s changes they have witnessed.
The Elizabeth Tower, as the “Clock Tower” was renamed in 2012 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of the monarch, was built in the 1840s.
While it dominated the Westminster district at the time, other imposing buildings have since emerged.
“Previously, on a quiet night, you could hear (Big Ben) up to 15 miles (24 km) away,” recalls Mr. Westworth. “Now you’re in luck if you hear it from the other side of Parliament.”
During the work, various parts of the bells were cleaned and repainted, but the bells themselves did not move. Big Ben is so imposing that the bottom of the tower would have to be destroyed to move it.
The hardest part of the work was removing the 11.5 ton clock mechanism, dating back to 1859, to clean the gears.
In addition, 28 light bulbs now illuminate the clock’s four dials, whose hues, ranging from green to white, are as reminiscent as possible of the gas bulbs of the Victorian era.
Another bulb, white, is placed above the bells to indicate when Parliament is in session.
– GPS Calibration –
Before the renovation, watchmakers used telephones to check the accuracy of the time. From now on, the watch will be calibrated by GPS thanks to the National Physics Laboratory.
However, the method of setting the time remains very traditional: old coins are used to weigh down or remove the watch’s giant springs, making it possible to advance or lose a second.
As a new hour approaches, it’s time to put on your earbuds and headphones to witness another test.
It’s 7am, Big Ben – a symbol of stability in Britain’s chaotic political context – chimes seven times in a deafening vibrato.
But Ian Westorth and his 35-year-old colleague Alex Jeffrey remain focused on their job: tending the 2,000 clocks in Parliament.
“Every day you tell time in a very manual way, using technology, art and craftsmanship,” says Jeffrey. “It’s the best job in the world.”