Big Ben is the largest four faced clock in the world. The clock is famous for it reliability mainly due to it’s clock mechanism created by Edward John Dent and despite the Blitz it still managed to run accurately. The main cultural focus of the clock is to celebrate with its chime on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month and the start of two minutes' silence (New Years Eve). The clock has become a symbol for the United Kingdom and London, particularly in the visual media. When a television or film-maker wishes to quickly convey to a non-UK audience a popular way to do so is to show an image of the famous Clock Tower. The great clock was cast on Saturday 10th April 1858 to replace the old Palace of Westminster which was destroyed in a fire.
