LONDON -- Big Ben, London's iconic clock tower, has kept time for residents of the city for some 160 years. The great hour bell housed in the lofty to Big Ben: It's just a big clock? - See 31,942 traveller reviews, 16,536 candid photos, and great deals for London, UK, at Tripadvisor. Big Ben's back in Britain. Bong! Big Ben's back in Britain. London (AFP) – Getting up close to Big Ben requires earplugs, and ear defenders over them to be safe. When the 13.7-tonne bell sounds The journey time between Big Ben and London Eye is around 7 min and covers a distance of around 1802 feet. Services are operated by Thames Clippers. Typically 224 services run weekly, although weekend and holiday schedules can vary so check in advance. 224 Weekly Services. 7 min Average Duration. The Great Bell, as it is otherwise known, weighs 13 tons (13,760 kilograms). Listen for its deep knell as it strikes on the hour, peeling high across the rooftops and rush of London’s traffic. Nowadays, the name Big Ben is synonymous with the bells, the clock and the tower. Since first sounding in July 1859, the clock’s reliability and 3 min. LONDON — The Great Bell of the Great Clock at the Palace of Westminster, known to all as “Big Ben,” is scheduled to return to full-time service on Sunday, after being mostly silent London’s answer to the Eiffel Tower and Empire State Building is an icon that serves as instant visual shorthand for the capital — though as any pub-quiz fan will tell you, the name “Big Ben The tower houses a 5-ton clock with four clock faces on each side measuring 2.7 m in diameter. What’s essential to know is the name Big Ben belongs to the 13-ton bell that’s housed inside the tower which rings only at the top of every hour. The tower itself was just called ‘Clock Tower’ since its construction in 1859. POHtA.