Big Ben to fall silent on Aug. 21 until 2021 for restoration
London's famous Big Ben will chime for the last time on Monday (Aug. 21) when the famous Great Bell falls silent until 2021. Officials at the Houses of Parliament issued an invitation to the public Monday to gather in Parliament Square in a week's time to hear the final bonging this decade of the iconic bell, one of the best known symbols of Britain's political focal point. Read more
The clock was designed in 1851 by Edmund Denison, a barrister and amateur horologist, and George Airy, the Astronomer Royal. The mechanism, based on that of a grandfather clock, has remained unchanged since its installation and triggers the striking of the bells.
On this day in 1858, the great bell 'Big Ben' was transported by carriage drawn by 16 white horses, from Whitechapel Bell Foundry to Parliament's New Palace Yard in Westminster.
The 31st May is the 150th anniversary of the keeping time start of the Great Westminster Clock. The Great Westminster Clock is popularly known as Big Ben after its great bell.