🔵 The BBC first broadcast Big Ben’s chimes on the radio in 1923. The weight of the hammer hitting the Big Ben is 200 kg.Īt the base of each face of the clock, we can read the Latin inscription “DOMINE Salvam FAC Reginam nostram Victoriam Primam” which translates as “Lord, protect our queen Victoria first” more simply today by “God, save the Queen!” It is around 7 meters in diameter and weighing more than 13 tonnes, the dials are made of iron rails and 312 pieces of glass.

The bell rang for the first time inside the Elizabeth Tower on July 11, 1859. 🔵 Big Ben was designed by architect Charles Barry in 1856, following the great fire which ravaged the Palace of Westminster in 1834. The second opinion is that the belt is named after Ben Caunt, the then heavyweight champion boxer.īut last but not least, Big Ben’s official name is “The Great Bell.” Although everyone, even the British, affectionately calls it Big Ben. Many think that the bell is undoubtedly named “Big Ben” after the first part of the name of Sir Benjamin Hall, who was its first supervising commissioner. 🔵 There is a sweet debate going on about the origin of the name Big Ben. In fact, Big Ben is the name of the bell of this giant clock placed in the Clock Tower or Elizabeth Tower. Instead, the original name of the tower was Clock Tower, which later renamed as Elizabeth Tower in 2012, to celebrate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. 🔵 Though the landmark tower in the British Parliament building is often referred to as Big Ben, but that is not the name of the tower itself. There is also an underground car park in front of the Parliament, managed by Q-Parks, with 183 spaces. You can reserve your place in advance. That being said, if you are one of the non-British driving in England, you should be aware that there are disabled parking spaces available at Great Peter Street, Smith Square and in the Methodist Central Hall at Matthew Parker Street. If you want to hire a bike you can find one in Smith Square about a 5 minute walk from the Houses of Parliament and in Abingdon Green opposite Victoria Tower Gardens.Ĭoaches can stop at Abingdon Street after passing the entrance to Victoria Tower Gardens. This is where they can drop off and pick up visitors, on the left side only before the second pedestrian crossing.Īlthough there is no specific location for coaches, you will find different spaces in Westminster to park coaches hourly.įirst of all, you should know that when you drive into central London, you enter what is called the congestion charge zone, a kind of congestion charge affecting certain categories of vehicles. The bike parks are quite close, opposite number 7 Millbank Street, just behind the Houses of Parliament or Palace of Westminster. If you want to get to Big Ben from the center, know that you can reach it from the Westminster and Waterloo bridges (both adapted for people with reduced mobility) as well as the Golden Jubilee pedestrian bridges which connect South Bank with Victoria Embankment. You will find a large number of buses passing through Parliament Square, on Victoria Street or near Trafalgar Square: lines 3, 8, 11, 12, 16, 24, 38, 52, 53, 73, 82, 87, 88, 148, 159, 211, 436 and 453. Other nearby stations are St James’s Park Tube Station and Embankment Underground Station, 8 and 10 minutes away respectively. It is accessible via the District, Circle or Jubilee lines.

The nearest station is Westminster Station, which is only 2 minutes away. You will have no trouble finding Big Ben, its location makes it accessible from almost any transport.

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