Why is Big Ben still closed?

Big Ben Opening Hours and Tickets Big Ben has been undergoing restoration work since 2017, the biggest conservation project in its history. Currently, it remains temporarily closed to visitors and plans to reopen in 2023. The Great Bell (nicknamed Big Ben) has just been repaired.



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Big Ben's chimes were silenced in 2017 to allow for a refurbishment of the 96m (315ft) Elizabeth Tower. Costs ballooned to £80m and the project took a year longer than expected. After five years, the 13.7-tonne bell finally chimed again and was officially unveiled in January.

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On April 30, 1997, at exactly 12:11 pm, London's iconic Big Ben clock stops ticking. For 54 minutes, the most famous clock in the world failed to keep time. Completed in 1859, Big Ben has a long history of technical issues.

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The 13-tonne Big Ben bell was largely silenced for five years while a major restoration of the Elizabeth Tower took place, with the “bongs” finally resuming regular service in November 2022.

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You can visit Big Ben by booking a 90-minute guided tour that takes visitors up 334 stairs to see the clock mechanism room, behind the four clock dials and the Belfry, where the famous bell is located. Tours can be booked by visiting the official UK Parliament website.

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1716: The bell from the clock tower is recast and later hung in the South West Tower of St Paul's Cathedral. If Big Ben is ever unable to strike, the bell in St Paul's is heard instead.

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The 13-tonne Big Ben bell was largely silenced for five years while a major restoration of the Elizabeth Tower took place, with the “bongs” finally resuming regular service in November 2022.

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When Big Ben's restoration is complete, visitors will have to climb 334 stone steps to reach the belfry? or take the newly installed elevator.

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Whereas the only German bomb to fall on the Tower during the First World War landed harmlessly in the Moat, the aerial bombardment of the Second World War caused huge damage to the Tower.

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