Barry’s stopped clock chimes once again - 11/12/06
Barry’s Town Hall clock has been restored and is in working
order after standing silent for five years. Its hourly and
quarterly chimes are now turning the heads of passers-by who are
not used to the sound of the clock, and they are pleasantly
surprised to see the clock tower now displays the right time.
The clock is operated by its original clockwork mechanism,
installed nearly one hundred years ago. It needs to be wound by
hand every week with a large starting handle ‘key’. Vale of
Glamorgan Council security guard and acting porter at the Town
Hall, Mike Jones, had the honour of turning the handle to restart
the clock on behalf of fellow Barrians.
Mike said: “The clock started up right away – it was as if it
had never stopped. They say the pendulum is two and a half
hundredweight, but it only needed the slightest touch to start.
It’s great to hear the chimes in the town again.”
The refurbishment of the clock is one of the final pieces of
work in the Vale of Glamorgan Council’s multi-million pound scheme
that has seen Barry’s Town Hall, King Square and Central Park
refurbished and brought back into use.
Several Vale Council parks and security staff have been shown
how to wind and regulate the clock – to ensure it keeps good time
for the town.