Your Voice Your Vote 2024

Live results
Last Updated: April 23, 9:32:41PM ET

Big Ben turns blue again

The famous London clock is undergoing a major renovation.

March 21, 2019, 3:01 PM

Big Ben, the iconic clock tower in London, is returning to its former glory.

The clock's north face has been restored to its original Prussian blue and gold colors. Sir Charles Barry built the tower in 1859.

Big Ben, which is currently covered in scaffolding, has been undergoing a major makeover that's expected to be completed in 2021.

PHOTO: A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
Mark Duffy/UK Parliament

“It was incredibly exciting to slowly piece together the tower's appearance as has it evolved throughout the decades and we are thrilled to see the original color scheme looking out over modern London once more,” Phillipa McDonnell and Rhiannon Clarricoates, the Lincoln Conservation researchers who worked on the restoration project, told ABC News in an email.

PHOTO: A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
Mark Duffy/UK Parliament

The famous 13-ton bell was silenced in August 2017 to start the $80 million renovation. The chimes still ring out for special occasions such as Armistice Day or New Year’s Eve.

Three of the four clock dials are still being repaired.

PHOTO: A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
The original clock tower before restoration work began in 2017.
Mark Duffy/UK Parliament

The last extensive conservation work at the Gothic tower was done between 1983 and 1985.

The Westminster Palace, home to the Houses of Parliament, is one of the top-visited sites in London and Big Ben is the star of the show.

PHOTO: A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
A part of the clock tower has been revealed for the first time since restoration work began in 2017. And it shows a mostly blue face (replacing black).
Mark Duffy/UK Parliament