Beautiful Liana Diamond

A rare look behind the clockface of the Big Ben, 1920.
Big Ben is actually the bell, not the clock or the tower. The tower is officially Elizabeth Tower. Previously it was called The Clock Tower. The tower at the other end of the building is Victoria Tower.

If you are a British citizen you can write to your local MP and request a visit to Elizabeth Tower which houses Big Ben. You get a full hour tour and get to see the clock face in person. You also get to be at the top of the tower to watch Big Ben chime the hour (which is so loud you need earplugs – which they provide). It’s free and you have to be in good health (lots of steps). You can also write to your MP for a tour of the Houses of Parliament. I’m not sure if they’re happening at the moment with various terror threats.

Another interesting piece of trivia about clocks: The reason the stems on clocks are called “hands” is that back before they were mechanical, a man would stand in the town square and indicate the time using his arms. This takes constant counting and precise timing, so the men chosen to do this were trained extensively in universities for years. Because it was a lonely and dedicated craft, the decrees these men received were referred to as “bachelor degrees”. Time-men were actually the reason behind a surprising number of terms and phrases we use to this day.