Walk anywhere near Westminster in London and you’ll hear it—the clear, steady toll of Big Ben’s bell, cutting across traffic noise and city chatter. But very few locals, let alone the tourists snapping pics on Bridge Street, know what it really takes to keep that famous chime running on the dot.
The Elizabeth Tower and its clock aren’t just historic; they’re complicated, right down to the last brass cog. There’s a whole team working above your head, just behind those four clock faces, focused on keeping every part clean, oiled, and in sync. Clocks this size need regular attention—imagine winding a watch but at the scale of a double-decker bus. Quick tip if you’re curious: you can spot some of the maintenance from Westminster Bridge if you visit early on a weekday, usually when scaffolding goes up or the times shift during seasonal adjustments.
The Big Ben maintenance crew relies on a mix of old-school tradition and clever upgrades. You’ll find them using tools you won’t see at your average B&Q, like custom-built hammers and ancient lubricants sourced to match the originals from the Victorian era. There’s also a strict schedule, like fine-tuning pendulums and resetting the clock after events like the London Marathon or major football matches, since road closures can affect access or vibration near the Tower.
- Cracking Open the Clock: Inside Big Ben’s Heart
- Daily Routines and Special Tools
- Challenges Unique to London’s Climate
- Watching Over a London Icon: Locals and Events
Cracking Open the Clock: Inside Big Ben’s Heart
Open the doors to the Elizabeth Tower and you’ll find a world most Londoners never see. The heart of Big Ben is a huge mechanical movement built way back in 1859 by clockmakers Edward John Dent and Frederick Dent. This massive gear system runs the four clock faces—each over 7 metres wide—using gravity, weights, and solid Victorian engineering.
Not many know the actual bell people call "Big Ben" is just one part of it all. The bell sits up high in the belfry, while the main clockwork sits below, surrounded by wheels, levers, and the famous double three-legged gravity escapement (yes, it’s as complicated as it sounds). This clever mechanism helps keep the clock accurate, even when hammer strikes from the bell could throw others off.
Everything in here is done on a serious scale. The pendulum alone is over 4 metres long and weighs about 300kg. To keep things ticking, a team visits regularly, checking for wear and tiny changes in timekeeping. If they notice even the slightest slip, it’s all hands on deck—sometimes a penny is added or removed from the pendulum to adjust the speed. It’s low-tech, but it works perfectly every time.
When you’re near Parliament Square and hear Big Ben ringing, remember all this action. That punctual chime is only possible because of relentless attention inside London’s most famous tower, with generations of clockmakers perfecting small details the public never gets to see.
| Big Ben Clock Facts | Details |
|---|---|
| Main bell weight | 13.7 tonnes |
| Number of clock faces | Four |
| Pendulum length | 4.2 metres |
| Clock hands size | Hour hand: 2.7m, Minute hand: 4.2m |
The next time someone mentions Big Ben as just a "clock tower," you’ll know it’s much more—a complex, carefully tended machine right at the heart of London.
Daily Routines and Special Tools
The people looking after Big Ben have to be organised—this isn’t your average wall clock. Every weekday, engineers climb the 334 steps inside the Elizabeth Tower to wind the clock manually. That happens three times a week, and each session takes about 90 minutes. You’ll never see them using power tools; everything is done by hand so the mechanics stay true to the old designs.
The clock’s great weights, which power the timekeeping and chimes, need to be raised with manual winches. If they don’t get wound up in time, the bells stop dead. Nobody wants London’s most famous clock to miss the hour, especially not during big public events or rush hour.
Greasing the gears is another vital job. Technicians use a blend of traditional clock oil that matches the original Victorian recipe, which helps avoid wear and tear. Even a little bit too much or too little oil can throw the gears off. There’s also a weekly check of the famous penny stacks placed on the clock’s pendulum—a local tradition. Adding or taking away a penny changes how the pendulum swings, which tweaks the time by just a couple seconds. It’s a classic London workaround that’s still in play, and yes, the coins are always good old British pennies.
Here’s a quick look at the everyday tools and tasks the team relies on:
- Manual winches for lifting clock weights
- Antique screwdrivers and custom-made spanners
- Soft brushes and microfibre cloths to keep dust out of gears
- Traditional clock oil with low freezing point for chilly London winters
- Metal gauge for measuring wear on the teeth of gears
- Pennies for micro-adjusting the pendulum
If you fancy seeing some of these tools, the Science Museum in South Kensington has a few on display from older repairs. It’s a great spot for anyone in London who loves a bit of behind-the-scenes magic.
Challenges Unique to London’s Climate
Ask any engineer from the Big Ben maintenance crew what keeps them on their toes in London, and the answer’s always the same—weather. London’s climate is a test for anything mechanical, but a landmark this old and exposed gets the worst of it. The relentless drizzle, thick air, and those freezing January nights don’t just make for gloomy commutes—they do a number on the Elizabeth Tower.
The metal in Big Ben’s workings expands and contracts with temperature swings. In summer, when the city’s rare heatwaves hit (think 2022’s 40°C spike), parts can swell or shift. Come winter, with the chill and damp typical along the Thames, metal contracts and clock grease thickens, so the gears need extra care. Unlike smaller clocks inside London museums or homes, the sheer size of Big Ben’s machinery means tiny temperature changes lead to big technical headaches.
There’s also the issue of moisture. London fog isn’t a myth, especially in autumn. It creeps into tiny cracks, and persistent dampness can corrode metal if not caught early. That’s why you’ll often see scaffolding around the Elizabeth Tower after a rainy spell—the team inspects and re-seals the stonework to stop moisture getting at the clockwork.
- The pendulum, which helps keep Big Ben accurate, relies on a set of old-penny coins to fine-tune weight and timing. But if humidity changes, the timing can shift, and the team scrambles to adjust by adding or removing pennies.
- Paint and gilding also take hits from pollution mixed with rain. London’s air often carries grime from buses and black cabs, so the clock faces get regular cleaning—locals might spot workers up there every few months, especially after windy storms.
- Whenever the weather swings fast, there’s always a risk that the clock may run within a couple of seconds off—the maintenance team makes quick tweaks to fix it right away, so the Big Ben chime is right on time.
Even events like the annual New Year’s Eve fireworks over the Thames or the Lord Mayor’s Show mean extra checks. The vibrations and smoke aren’t great for an open-air clock. It’s a non-stop job, and London’s classic, unpredictable climate keeps everyone alert.
Watching Over a London Icon: Locals and Events
Big Ben isn’t just part of the backdrop for Londoners; it’s a sort of timekeeper for the city’s routines, transport, and even moods. Anyone who’s commuted through Westminster tube station—or waited for the New Year’s Eve chime—knows how much the bell means to daily life. The crew behind it gets this too and actually plans maintenance with local events and city habits in mind.
Say, for example, there’s a Royal celebration like Trooping the Colour or Remembrance Sunday at Whitehall. Big Ben’s maintenance is rescheduled so the Big Ben chimes won’t miss a beat during TV broadcasts or memorial silence. Sports fans who watched England play the Euro 2021 final might remember the special chimes that echoed across London right before kickoff. Even more, during major demonstrations or the London Marathon, the team coordinates with Westminster Council to work around road and crowd control. It helps keep everything ticking—both literally and in the city sense.
“No maintenance happens in a vacuum here,” says Sue Rose, a senior engineer on the Big Ben team. “We check dates for marches, football, and even the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. The bells are part of London’s soundtrack, and everyone expects to hear them.”
Loads of residents feel a real connection too. Some keep an eye out for changes in the bongs (and yes, locals joke and call them ‘bongs’). Community groups occasionally flag small changes if, say, the midnight strike runs a second late—someone always notices. During the big conservation project between 2017–2022, Londoners could even book tours to spot the restoration up close—something folks in Southwark and Soho are still chatting about.
- If you hear complete silence at the hour, it might just mean a planned check or quick fix—don’t panic, there’s usually an update on the Parliament’s official X (formerly Twitter) feed.
- For those in Westminster, keep an eye on local event boards. Sometimes, rare tower open days let you peek behind the scenes.
- Got tourists visiting? Remind them that special events like Pride in London or Remembrance Day shape when and how Big Ben rings—they get a kick out of these city quirks.
Locals, expats, and regular visitors all nod to Big Ben’s role in city life. It’s a rare spot where tradition, tech, and community actually meet, right in the centre of London.
