[Closed] That Bell in London

I don't really get it either.

Our fellow countrymen would rather see the tower fall down than receive much needed maintainance ...

Much like many things today people just want to use and use and use and not maintain them.

Well, can you understand tradition, fame and tourism?
It's a very old, very famous bell that brings in lots of tourists.
There. That's about as simple as I can explain it... 🙂

Me neither.

I don't get the protesting masses having little or no regard for the long-term hearing and general welfare of the craftsmen working close to the bell for the next few years...

Isn't just the media making a mountain out of a mole hill as usual?

I'd bet most people are just "mehhhhh, whatever'

Is it a London thing?

No (from a Londoner perspective)
I see it as a tourist thing for those from the shires/abroad along with traff square, garfuncles/berni-inn, Covent Garden, Camden Town, Madame Taussauds, people standing very still painted silver etc.
Of some hackneyed Brexit Great Britain thing along with Lady Di, Wimbledon and warm brown beer.

Not worth worrying about.

I'm pretty far from the above - for me it's statement of national pride - can you imagine the Americans letting the White House fall into disrepair? The French Versailles?

It's a fairly typical British thing that we've let it get to this state of disrepair - decades of "that'll do" maintence and lack of care and of course the equally British budget creep when every man and his dog wants in parlement wants to stamp their little bit of authority on it and get their name in the paper.

[quote=PeterPoddy ]It's a very old, very famous bell that brings in lots of tourists.

I suspect the tourists might also come for other things - most of them probably won't even notice the bell not chiming.

you called?

[img] [/img]

I have no problem with the renovation - it's an historic building / bell and people come from all over the world to see it. It's just the massive amount of coverage of the whole closure thing is getting that I don't really get.

Storm in a tea cup, it's a bell and it need maintenance, so what if it out of action for a while.

Speaking as a visitor to That London several times a year, I honestly can't say I notice That Bell ringing, it just never makes that much of an impression, but it gives the Daily Sodding Mail something to bitch about I 'spose.

It's an inconsequential story but seemingly the Daily Mail theme of the week. Easy to weave:

Jingoism
Lady Di (vague wedding reference)
Elf n safety gone made (brave spitfire pilots flew til their ears bled, never did them any harm until their deaths aged 27)
Brexit (ring the bells til Gerry gets the idea again)
Etc

It's a good story to keep the media ticking over the August Silly Season.

was a proper slow news day on the BBC website the other day.

they did a story last week about there being no bongs due to maintenance, which is fair enough.

then they had to run a totally separate news story to tell everyone that the light in big ben would also be turned off. really? that was worthy of a separate story?

they'll conjure something up to chime in the new year. of course Jools' Hootenanny won't be affected, since that's probably been recorded already.

I too don't get all the fuss, I suspect it's a certain type of person that revels in making this an issue. Thankfully I care little about what they think.

It's a bell, it's famous for being nothing more than ringing most days. It's in a tower that needs a lot of skilled renovation work and to accomplish that, the bell needs to be quiet.

Quite why MPs are in a froth about its silence simply means they didn't read the cross party paper they signed explaining the implications.

Which absolutely indicates thier lack of competence, renders incompetent frothy whataboutery. But they need to be heard now, for the forth coming negotiations are going absolutely swimmingly aren't they.

Why don't they install some loudspeakers and play an audio file instead?

Or just stream the audio file so folk can listen to it on their phone or whatever?

It's a distraction to keep your mind off the fact that you're being exploitated every day and that true power lies in the hands of the collective individuals.

I suspect the tourists might also come for other things - most of them probably won't even notice the bell not chiming.

They most certainly do come for other things. But they also come for Big Ben. It's about as big a symbol of London as you can possibly get. I don't think anything betters it to be fair.

But it needs repairing. So, bingo, there's the interest. 🙂

I don't understand how some of you don't understand that.

Not a London thing, I've lived here most of my life and don't get what the fuss is. Much better to be silent so people can work safely rather than have to work around bells ringing all day long. The idea of keeping it active during the maintenance was as stupid as the need for blue passports and a royal yacht.

was as stupid as the need for blue passports and a royal yacht.

Once the great repeal bill has been passed, such talk will be a treasonable offence....

I bet they don't cut corners on the repair and fit some shit cladding.

Anyway- 4 years? They could knock it down and build a new one quicker.

Once the great repeal bill has been passed, such talk will be a treasonable offence....

The way things are going I wouldn't be surprised.

4chan understands:

[img] [/img]

stupid as the need for blue passports

Or just one circle.

W.
G.
A.
F.

[quote=PeterPoddy ]But they also come for Big Ben. It's about as big a symbol of London as you can possibly get.

Nah - they come for The Elizabeth Tower.

This fabricated story is just a distraction from all the important shit that no one wants to deal with.

I don't want to deal with it either.

I'm in and out of Westminster tube at least once most weeks. There's always a bit of a crowd photographing their mate propping it up / selfying erm, themselves with it, whatever. (Obviously I never even look vaguely in the direction of the QE tower. Oh no.) But l've never seen any behaviour to suggest that bongs are a thing for them. Not that I pay them any heed of course. Except when they stand on the left on the escalator.

I think it's more for he tourists than anything. If I were a tourist to London from a far flung land with my list of things to do in London hearing Big Ben chime would be on that list. Also there is a tradition aspect to it. In all it's long history have thee bells never failed to sound. I think there is something significant in that - not important but send a shame to silence them. There is technology to protect he hearing of the workers a good old fashioned pair of ear defenders for a start. I can't get too excited bit incertaiknly think tradition is important and worth preserving wherever feasible. I suspect they've not tried too hard to come up with a workable solution.

Rallying cry for the brexiteers cos they'd much rather wave flags over some jingoistic bullshit than talk about the catastrophe they are inflicting on the country.

in all it's long history have thee bells never failed to sound

errrrr. No. have been a number of occasions they have failed to sound, the longest was 7 weeks I think?
Edit: it was for 9 months in 1976

The bell plays an important symbolic role in signalling periodically the bell-endery that goes on constantly [url= https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/aug/19/brexit-eu-big-ben-theresa-may ]Below[/url]

[quote=wobbliscott ]There is technology to protect he hearing of the workers a good old fashioned pair of ear defenders for a start.

PPE - for when you can't remove the hazard any other way.

*Opens thread wondering if anyone has blamed Brexit for everything again.*

*Isn't surprised*

I suspect they've not tried too hard to come up with a workable solution.

I think this is probably right, there seem to be quite a few people in the decision making process who were aware of the length of the proposed shut down. The guy who managed the refurb 30 years ago saying they managed to carry an extensive refurb out with only short term shut downs of the clock.

wobbliscott - Member

I think it's more for he tourists than anything. If I were a tourist to London from a far flung land with my list of things to do in London hearing Big Ben chime would be on that list.

I have been a tourist to that london from a far flung land and I wanted to see the parliament but I didn't do any soundhearing (it's like sightseeing only...). It goes bong basically.

Why can't they use robots, like they do in Fukushima?

Or really really old people, who are already deaf?

Men get rid of the bell and replace with a suitably amplified version of this

Meh get rid of the bell and replace with a suitably amplified version of this

wobbliscott » There is technology to protect he hearing of the workers a good old fashioned pair of ear defenders for a start.
PPE - for when you can't remove the hazard any other way.

Anyway- 4 years? They could knock it down and build a new one quicker.

Another line added to stuff STW doesn't want to understand 😉
It's a very depressing list.
Given how common it is to call London insular it's exactly how some come across here, it's a symbol and iconic building/sound historically it has started the news, sounded in the new year and is a constant background to those living there.
Yes it has happened during a slow news week and yes the swivel eyed loons are jumping on it but underneath all that it is still a bit significant. Compared to a lot of the world the UK has a great depth of history and tradition which should be celebrated.

[quote=Northwind ]I didn't do any soundhearing (it's like sightseeing only...). It goes bong basically.

It's also something you can experience perfectly adequately by listening to the radio. A good set of headphones and the experience is completely indistinguishable from the real thing. Not only that, but given new-fangled recording equipment you can listen to the bongs on demand rather than having to wait.

Why not relocate the whole building on to the deck of our new aircraft carrier, fill it with Brexiteers and send them off to foreign climes looking for trade agreements?

Then, when it's a suitable distance away, sent them all our Trident missiles airmail because they also love those.

That would get rid of 3 white elephants and a load of numpties in one hit.

Or maybe that's too Scottish a solution? 🙂

Yow git mi vort... 😀

But how are we going to get the news without the Bongs?

Couldn't they just put a big bell in the middle of that new garden bridge thing they've built? I've not seen it yet, but judging by the tens of millions of taxpayers money they've spent on it, it must be lovely.

The whole thing barely registers on my giveashitometer. This is only a conversation as it is such a quiet news time.

I reckon they could but a bicycle bell on the new HS2 and start ringing it from Town right on out to the Provinces...

Imagine BloJo perched on the front of the train frantically ringing the bell with his right thumb...at 66mph (because of signalling failures, obvz)

franksinatra - Member
The whole thing barely registers on my giveashitometer. This is only a conversation as it is such a quiet news time.

It's what they're doing while we are diverted that worries me.

What national asset has been sold off to their tax avoiding foreign billionaire chums?

There's bound to be something going on under the radar....

[quote=mikewsmith ] sounded in the new year and is a constant background [b]to those living there[/b].Good point. Who is paying for the renovation?

While the houses of parliament are being restored, they should move them all to an industrial unit in Telford

While the houses of parliament are being restored, they should move them all to an industrial unit in [s]Telford [/s] Widness/Runcorn.

Anyway, everyone seems to forget the important issue, how can us expats look mournfully at the picture on our HP bottles with a tear in our eyes as we try and persuade the brown nectar onto our inferior foreign bacon, while knowing the bells are silent?