“At the end of the day, you could say it is just a series of concentric stone shafts with a bloody great clock on top,” said Adam Watrobski, the chief architect of the tower's restoration, which cost 80 million pounds, or about $97 million.

The extensive renovation of the Elizabeth Tower (which houses Big Ben) was a massive financial undertaking that concluded with a final bill of approximately £80 million ($100 million USD). When the project began in 2017, the original estimate was just £29 million, but as work progressed, architects and engineers discovered significantly more damage to the 160-year-old stonework and iron roof than anticipated. The complexity of stripping and repainting the intricate clock faces, repairing the ancient "Great Clock" mechanism, and installing a modern lift for maintenance and disabled access caused the costs to nearly triple. This restoration was the most extensive in the tower's history and required the building to be encased in scaffolding for five years. In 2026, the tower stands fully restored, with its clock faces returned to their original Prussian blue and gold colors. While the £80 million price tag was a source of political debate, the restoration has successfully secured the future of London's most iconic landmark for at least another 150 years.