Big Ben turns 150 today! However, to be more exact, today marks the day when the Great Clock started keeping time back in 1859.Most people think of Big Ben as the whole structure (the Clock Tower, the Great Clock and the Great Bell), but Big Ben is actually the nickname for the bell itself, which didn't start chiming until July 11th that year. And its success was very short-lived. Just three months later the big bell cracked and Big Ben became silent for four years!
The bongs of Big Ben are heard every hour (and chimes ring out every quarter hour). Rarely has Big Ben gone mute. The chimes were stopped for a couple of years during WWI, but then carried on during WWII when Britons observed a minute's silence as the clock struck nine. It was called the Big Ben Minute.
Construction of the tower in 1859 was marred by delays, budget overruns and bureaucratic squabbling. (Nothing ever changes, heh?) It was lambasted in the media as a disgrace and much too loud. But as with the London Eye, all the negativity turned into positives and soon Big Ben became a cherished part of London's landscape. In 1949 it made its first TV appearance on New Year's Eve and has played a starring role in New Years celebrations ever since.
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