Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1
Elizabeth Tower - “Big Ben” is just the nickname for the thirteen-ton bell that strikes
the hour (and is broadcast across the world by the BBC), after either the former
Commissioner of Works, Benjamin Hall, or a popular heavyweight boxer of the
time, Benjamin Caunt.
The original Palace of Westminster was built by
Edward the Confessor
in the eleventh
century to allow him to watch over the building of his abbey. Westminster then served
as the seat of all the English monarchs until a fire forced Henry VIII out, and he
eventually decamped to Whitehall. The Lords have always convened at the palace, but
it was only following Henry's death that the House of Commons moved from the
abbey's Chapter House into the palace's St Stephen's Chapel.
In 1834, a fire reduced the old palace to rubble. Today, save for Westminster Hall,
and a few pieces of the old structure buried deep within the interior, everything you see
today is the work of
Charles Barry
, who wanted to create something that expressed
national greatness through the use of Gothic and Elizabethan styles. The resulting orgy
of honey-coloured pinnacles, turrets and tracery is the greatest achievement of the
Gothic Revival. Inside, the Victorian love of mock-Gothic detail is evident in the maze
of over one thousand committee rooms and of
ces, the fittings of which were largely
the responsibility of Barry's assistant,
Augustus Pugin
.
INFORMATION AND TOURS
Sitting times
To find out exact “sitting times” and dates
of “recesses” (holiday closures), phone
T
020 7219 4272, or
visit
W
parliament.uk. If Parliament is in session a Union
flag flies from the southernmost tower, the Victoria Tower;
at night there's a light above the clock face on Big Ben.
Public galleries
To watch proceedings in either the
House of Commons - the livelier of the two - or the House
of Lords, simply join the queue for the public galleries on
Cromwell Green, near St Stephen's Gate. The public are let
in slowly from about 2.30pm on Mondays, 11.30am on
Tuesdays, around 1pm Wednesdays, and 9.30am on
Thursdays and Sitting Fridays. Security is tight and the
whole procedure can take over an hour, so to avoid the
queues, turn up an hour or so later or on a Sitting Friday.
Question Time
UK citizens can attend Question Time -
when the House of Commons is at its liveliest - which takes
place in the first hour (Mon-Thurs) and Prime Minister's
Question Time (Wed only), but they must book in advance
with their local MP (
T
020 7219 3000).
Guided tours
Throughout the year there are Saturday tours
(9.15am-4.30pm; £16.50) and occasional more specialist
tours (£30); during the summer there are more frequent
tours (Tues-Sat 9.15am-4.30pm) - in all cases tours take
just over an hour and it's a good idea to book in advance
(
T
0844 847 1672), though you can buy tickets on the day
from the ticket o
ce by the Jewel Tower. All year round, UK
0
50
River Thames
yards
Terrace
Speaker's
Green
Big Ben
House of
Commons
House of
Lords
Queen's
Robing
Room
Commons
Lobby
Central
Lobby
Peers'
Lobby
Royal Gallery
Victoria
Tower
New Palace
Yard
Sovereign's
Entrance
Old Palace
Yard
Westminster Hall
Richard
Lionheart
St Stephen's
Gate
Cromwell
Green
Cromwell
Jewel
Tower
HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT
