Big Ben to chime again for Christmas

London's iconic Big Ben which fell silent for essential repairs in August is to chime again over Christmas after Parliament authorities reviewed plans earlier this week.
Big Ben, officially named the Elizabeth Tower within the Palace of Westminster parliamentary complex, was to chime only for events such as the stroke of midnight on New Year's Eve.
But House of Commons leader, Andrea Leadsom, has been pushing for a rethink on the decision and has succeeded in getting the chimes back for the festive season in December.
It has now been decided the bell will toll between December 23 and New Year's Day.

"Some people might think this is a trivial matter but over the course of the repairs, we have a duty to uphold the huge appeal of Big Ben to the millions of tourists that visit it each year," Leadsom was quoted as saying by 'The Sunday Times.
"I'm sure visitors to the Eiffel Tower or Taj Mahal would be incredibly disappointed if they were covered in scaffolding

the same is true of Elizabeth Tower," she said.
Leadsom pledged to push for an assessment of more opportunities, and is determined that the Great Bell will chime for other extended public holidays, such as Easter.

"I am delighted that we've made progress, and I will continue to press for the bell to ring again before 2021," Leadsom added.
A full assessment of the amount of bell chimes that can take place over the next four years of repairs is still under review, with the cost of any potential period of ringing likely to be at the heart of any decision, particularly given the escalating cost of the work.
Last month, it was revealed that the repair costs for the world-famous Tower had doubled to an estimated 61 million pounds.
The Great Bell, the official name for the bell, traditionally rings every hour to the note of E, accompanied by four quarter bells that chime every 15 minutes.

This is not the first time the bells have fallen silent: they were stopped for maintenance in 2007, and between 1983 and 1985.