Big Ben displayed the incorrect time this morning, despite its recent £80million renovation project.
The clock face showed the time of 9.00am until well past 10.00am, with Commons sources telling GB News that the issue was expected to be fixed by midday today.
It has since been manually fixed.
A House of Commons spokesman explained: "We are aware that the clock dials on the Elizabeth Tower were temporarily displaying the incorrect time this morning [Wednesday 24th April]. Teams worked quickly to rectify the issue and carried out servicing to the mechanism, which has now completed.
Big Ben has stopped working despite £80m restoration workGB News"The clock dials of the Elizabeth Tower are currently functioning as normal and no risks to the integrity of the mechanism have been identified. Following the historic refurbishment of the Great Clock, rigorous and regular servicing takes place in line with horological industry standards, to ensure the clock can continue to function correctly."
The clock also performed 11 'bongs' at 10.06am, The Telegraph reported.
Its original Victorian mechanism was renovated as part of a huge restoration project which began in 2017 and was completed in 2022, costing £80million.
The Elizabeth Tower and the clockwork and bell mechanism within it underwent the biggest repair and conservation project in its 160-year history.
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Big Ben underwent a five-year restoration project beginning in 2017
PA
Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said the clock change “will herald a new beginning” for the central London landmark.
Last July, the clock stopped working twice in just one week.
The clock was designed and installed in 1859, with the aim of creating the most accurate public timepiece in the world.
When black paint was stripped away from the dials during repair work in 2021, it was discovered that it was originally painted in a colour known as Prussian blue.
The strange sighting is not the most bizarre incident to occur in the capital this morning.
A group of Household Cavalry horses ran loose in central London after throwing off their military riders during an exercise. Four people were injured in the ensuing chaos.
One of the horses also seemingly ran into a double-decker bus, smashing its windscreen after running loose near Buckingham Palace Road, Victoria.
The army has since said that all the horses have been recovered.
