WESTMINSTER HALL, BIG BEN IS BACK! INSIDE LONDON BIG BEN, UK PARLIAMENT 4K TOUR, LONDON CITY WALK

Описание: Recorded on August 2022
Saturday, 3pm, 28°C

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Big Ben is the nickname for the Great Bell of the striking clock at the north end of the Palace of Westminster in London, England,[1] and the name is frequently extended to refer also to the clock and the clock tower.[2] The official name of the tower in which Big Ben is located was originally the Clock Tower, but it was renamed Elizabeth Tower in 2012 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II.

The tower was designed by Augustus Pugin in a neo-Gothic style. When completed in 1859, its clock was the largest and most accurate four-faced striking and chiming clock in the world.[3] The tower stands 316 feet (96 m) tall, and the climb from ground level to the belfry is 334 steps. Its base is square, measuring 40 feet (12 m) on each side. Dials of the clock are 22.5 feet (6.9 m) in diameter. All four nations of the UK are represented on the tower on shields featuring a rose for England, thistle for Scotland, shamrock for Ireland, and leek for Wales. On 31 May 2009, celebrations were held to mark the tower's 150th anniversary.[4]

Big Ben is the largest of the tower's five bells and weighs 13.5 long tons (13.7 tonnes; 15.1 short tons).[1] It was the largest bell in the United Kingdom for 23 years. The origin of the bell's nickname is open to question; it may be named after Sir Benjamin Hall, who oversaw its installation, or heavyweight boxing champion Benjamin Caunt. Four quarter bells chime at 15, 30 and 45 minutes past the hour and just before Big Ben tolls on the hour. The clock uses its original Victorian mechanism, but an electric motor can be used as a backup.

The tower is a British cultural icon recognised all over the world. It is one of the most prominent symbols of the United Kingdom and parliamentary democracy,[5] and it is often used in the establishing shot of films set in London.[6] The clock tower has been part of a Grade I listed building since 1970 and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1987.

On 21 August 2017, a four-year schedule of renovation works began on the tower. Modifications have included adding a lift, re-glazing and repainting the clock dials, and upgrading lighting and repairing roof tiles among other improvements. With a few exceptions, such as New Year's Eve and Remembrance Sunday, the bells are to be silent until the work is completed in 2022.[7] In December 2021, the last scaffolding was removed from the clock faces, revealing the restoration work that had taken place since 2017.[8] In April 2022, the gantry supporting the scaffolding was removed, leaving the tower free of scaffolding.[9]

"British Parliament" redirects here. For the pre-1801 parliament, see Parliament of Great Britain.
Coordinates: 51°29′57.5″N 00°07′29.1″W

The Parliament of the United Kingdom[note 1] is the supreme legislative body[note 2] of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories.[3][4] It alone possesses legislative supremacy and thereby ultimate power over all other political bodies in the UK and the overseas territories. Parliament is bicameral but has three parts, consisting of the sovereign (Crown-in-Parliament), the House of Lords, and the House of Commons (the primary chamber).[5][6] Both houses of Parliament meet in separate chambers at the Palace of Westminster in the City of Westminster, one of the inner boroughs of the capital city, London.

The House of Lords includes two different types of members: the Lords Spiritual, consisting of the most senior bishops of the Church of England; and the Lords Temporal, consisting mainly of life peers, appointed by the sovereign,[7] and of 92 hereditary peers, sitting either by virtue of holding a royal office, or by being elected by their fellow hereditary peers. Prior to the opening of the Supreme Court in October 2009, the House of Lords also performed a judicial role through the Law Lords.

The House of Commons is an elected chamber with elections to 650 single-member constituencies held at least every five years under the first-past-the-post system.[8] By constitutional convention, all government ministers, including prime minister, are members of the House of Commons or, less commonly, the House of Lords and are thereby accountable to the respective branches of the legislature. Most cabinet ministers are from the Commons, whilst junior ministers can be from either house.

With the global expansion of the British Empire, the UK Parliament has shaped the political systems of many countries as ex-colonies and so it has been called the "Mother of Parliaments".[9][note 3]