Little Ben
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Little Ben is a cast iron miniature clock tower, situated at the intersection of Vauxhall Bridge Road and Victoria Street, in Westminster, central London, close to the approach to Victoria station. In design it mimics the famous clock tower colloquially known as Big Ben at the Palace of Westminster, found at the other end of Victoria Street.
Little Ben was manufactured, according to Pevsner, by Gillett & Johnston of Croydon, and was erected in 1892; removed from the site in 1964, and restored and re-erected in 1981 by Westminster City Council with sponsorship from Elf Aquitaine Ltd "offered as a gesture of Franco-British friendship".
There is a rhyming couplet Apology for Summer Time signed J.W.R. affixed to the body of the clock:
- My hands you may retard or may advance
- my heart beats true for England as for France.
The couplet is a reference to the fact that the clock is not adjusted for Daylight Saving Time leading to the time being correct for France during the summer months and correct for England during the winter.
А replica of Little Ben called l'Horloge'(painted silver) was erected in 1903 in the centre of Victoria, capital of Seychelles to mark the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria 1897.
