The Great Clock of Westminster (Big Ben) Restoration

Few landmarks are as instantly recognisable as Elizabeth Tower, home to the Great Clock of Westminster and its world-famous bell, Big Ben. For over 160 years, the clock has defined London’s skyline and marked the passage of time with its steady tick and the resonant chime of its 13½ ton Big Ben bell.

Keith Scobie-Youngs, Director of Cumbria Clocks, the company which restored the Great Clock (Big Ben) of Westminster, is visiting Guernsey for a ‘quiet’ weekend, during which he has agreed to bring an audio-visual talk of how the clock’s enormous works were restored to full life after 158 years of service.

Installed in 1859, the Great Clock was the very height of horological innovation, driving four immense dials, each 22½ feet in diameter, while keeping time to within one second of the hour.

Between 2017 to 2022, the most comprehensive programme of conservation commenced.

The Cumbria Clock Company and the Palace Team were entrusted with dismantling, removing and conserving the five ton clock mechanism. Piece by piece, the mechanism was lowered 175 feet down the weight shaft and transported, in total secrecy, to Cumbria.

Every part was cleaned using specialist methods such as aqua blasting and dry ice cleaning, revealing original finishes and exposing areas that required repair. Worn teeth, pivots, and bushes were repaired or remade with traditional techniques.

Throughout, Cumbria Clock Company compiled a photographic archive of over 3,000 images and produced full engineering drawings, ensuring this knowledge will never be lost.

Sponsored by Ian Lihou (Guernsey’s Horologist) and Piers du Pré

Tickets Pricing = Free - Donations, please, on leaving.

Foyer and Bar open from 7.00pm

Presentation starts at 8.00pm