Big Ben is More Complicated Than You Think

Big Ben, the world's most famous clock, the icon of London, a beacon for Britain and democracy

the most obvious must on your first London trip. This is Big Ben. Well, under all that scaffolding

For the last four years, this is what you'd see if you came to visit. And besides, it's actually

called the Elizabeth Tower, not Big Ben, just like that is in London Bridge. That's Tower Bridge

because of the towers. It's currently under restoration, but there's a lot more history behind this tower

than you might think, from its construction to how it survived through not one, but two world wars

to what's being done with it today. I'm Lashan, a contributor to Bright Trip here in London

on a very, very hot day in London. And today we're gonna go through all the history

behind this iconic clock tower, and also share some tips on how to visit it once all the scaffolding comes off in 2022

Fun fact, this wasn't the first clock tower in this location. The first clock tower was said to have been built here

in the 1290s, over 720 years ago, but there are no records of it

Then there was another in 1367, England's first chiming clock. Then it was replaced with a sundial in 1698

And then in 1834, the entire Palace of Westminster, which the clock tower is a part of

is almost completely destroyed by fire. This is where the real story of the Elizabeth Tower

and Big Ben begins. Architect Charles Barry wins the competition designed the new Palace of Westminster and includes a clock tower in his final design

With the help of fellow architect Augustus Welby Pugin. What a name. They designed the entire palace

in the gothic revival style we know it for today. Pointed arches and windows, vertical elements

galore, only the best materials and most elaborate ornamentation. I studied architecture and

engineering in uni. This is my jam, okay. After a few disputes over who should design the clock

a competition was held in 1846 to find the final design. Competition referee Sir George Airy

astronomer royal and architect Charles Barry wanted the most accurate chiming turret clock in the world In the world To be accurate within one second of the striking hour Considering at the time

as we're talking about clocks, time was measured by the rising sun

this was a massive challenge. It took until February 1852, six years for a good enough design to surface

By Edmund Beckett Denison, a lawyer and amateur horologist and famous chronometer and watchmaker Edward John Dent

was brought on to build the clock. It took two years to finish and cost 2,500 pounds

around 285,000 pounds today. And the Royal Observatory at Greenwich, yes, of that line on the map fame

short cycle from my house actually, was brought on to ensure its accuracy as they were the nation's most accurate chronometers

It was accurate. They did it. They built the most accurate turret clock in the world

The second challenge was the bell, Big Ben. There were plenty of issues on the path to get this right

Clock designer Denison envisioned the loudest sound possible, which involved making the largest

bell ever cast in England, and a huge hammer to ring it. Unfortunately, after a year of daily testing, this hammer made a 1.2 meter crack in the

bell on the 17th of October 1857. 1.2 meters. That is huge

The bell was melted down and recast on the 10th of April 1958, now weighing 13.5 tons

2.5 tons lighter than before. And overseeing these complicated late stages of the project was MP Sir

Benjamin Hall. A tall man. And it's believed that the Great Bell was nicknamed after him in jest

A little fun fact for you to whip out when you get here. Big Ben rang loud and proud for the first

time on the 11th of July 1859, but again developed another crack just two months later in September

After four years of silence, the final solution was conceived by rotating the bell 90 degrees

cutting out a small square from the bell so the crack wouldn't spread, which you can still see today

and using a smaller hammer. If only they just did that in the first place

This clock tower is one of the most resilient icons in London surviving not just one but two world wars For two years during World War I the bell laid silent to avoid enemy aircraft from using it to locate the houses of parliament And in World War II all the lights were turned

off for the same reason, from 1939 to 1945. During World War II, the palace of Westminster was hit

by bombs 14 times, while the clock tower was only hit by one small bomb that broke all the glass on

its south dial. In 2012, the tower that everyone thinks of as Big Ben was officially renamed the

Elizabeth Tower after the Queen. Before it was just known as the clock tower

And the official name of the bell is the Great Bell. Real original guys. Over the

162 years since its completion it's gone under a number of deep cleans and

refurbishments with the clock faces having gone under six different paint jobs. Changing to the black we know it for in the 1930s to hide discoloration

from pollution. The pollution in London since the Industrial Revolution was Really bad to say the least. This is a photo of St. Paul's Cathedral in 1970

That isn't a fancy black paint job, that's pollution and soot. Could you imagine breathing in that stuff? That doesn't look like a good time to me

Thankfully London is a lot cleaner now so since 2017 the Elizabeth Tower has

going through its first complete restoration from the ground up. Or top down should I say

Costing almost a whopping 80 million pounds. The project restores the building's external facades

renovates the clock itself, adds loads more improvements and even installs an elevator

We are living in the future. 2021 elevators. The whole process is extremely delicate with just the

the scaffolding surrounding the tower taking six months to complete and then the tower has

been carefully worked on from top to bottom, cleaned and re-gilded with every piece of

stone and iron work being assessed. If replacement stones were needed, craftsmen painstakingly

hand carved them on site with more than 700 new pieces being created and installed The clock faces themselves are probably the most striking part of this whole process with each of the 324 pieces of hand cut glass on each clock face being replaced and all

the layers of paint on the clock dial have been blasted off right down to the original cast iron

so it can be repaired and then restored to its original color scheme of prussian blue and gilded

gold. As part of the process one clock face must be visible to the public at all times and having

seen it a bunch of times in person it is pretty striking to see and even more striking once all

this scaffolding comes off in the second quarter of 2022. So once all this scaffolding comes off

how can you see it? I have some bad news chaps. If the rules from before still apply tours of the

Elizabeth Tower and Big Ben are free but are only available to UK residents no exceptions and must

be requested from a member of parliament or the house of lords and are generally booked up for up

to six months in advance. I know I'm as disappointed as you are but don't fret you don't need to be

inside the tower itself to appreciate it. To get a view of the Elizabeth Tower from up high you can

take a ride on the London Eye just across the river Thames for 31 pounds but my favorite way

to see it is by bike. Grab a Santana share bike for just two pounds a day for 30 minute rides and

go for a ride along the river Thames from central towards Westminster. There's a beautiful cycle

part that goes right along the river and even wraps around the clock tower itself and from there

it's just a small detour to Buckingham Palace as you do. I love how casually cycling past the

Queen's house is a thing you can do here it'll never get old for me. If you're hungry for some more London info we have heaps over on brighttrip.com with not one but two courses on this amazing city

going through everything you need to know when it comes to planning your London trip and a full guide

on London's transportation system. It's pretty complicated and there are a lot of money and

time-saving hacks to wrap your head around. Hope you enjoyed this video on Big Ben, leave a like if you liked it and if you've been to London before let me know what your favorite

hidden gem is in the comments. I need some extra items for my list. Make sure you subscribe for

more awesome travel videos here on Bright Trip and I'll see you next time. Ciao