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Clock Tower

The Clock Tower is a free-standing clock tower in the centre of Brighton, part of the English city of Brighton and Hove. Built in 1888 to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria, it became a distinctive landmark in the popular seaside resort. The structure included innovative structural features, and the city’s residents retain a nostalgic affection for it, despite divided opinion about its architectural merit. English Heritage has listed the Clock Tower at Grade II for its architectural and historical importance.

Brighton Clock Tower standing in a busy city plaza with pedestrians, a red double-decker bus, and a street beside it.
Brighton’s Clock Tower rises above a busy urban plaza on a clear day.
June 2008 © · CC BY-SA 2.0
Brighton Clock Tower with a gilded spire above nearby streets and a red bus below.
Brighton Clock Tower rises above the surrounding city streets on an overcast day.
January 2013 © · CC BY-SA 3.0
Jubilee Clock Tower at night with strands of Christmas lights radiating from the top against a dark sky.
The Jubilee Clock Tower in Brighton lit with festive strands of lights at night.
© · CC BY-SA 4.0
Brighton Clock Tower with an ornate stone facade, clock face, ship figurehead, and Queen Victoria mosaic portrait
The Brighton Clock Tower rises above the street, with a clock face, ship figurehead, and Queen Victoria mosaic portrait.
July 2017 © · CC BY-SA 4.0
Brighton Clock Tower seen from street level between nearby buildings, with a pedestrian in the foreground and traffic lights on the right.
Brighton Clock Tower rises above a busy street corner in central Brighton.
August 2012 © · CC BY-SA 3.0

Identification

TitleClock Tower
Typefree-standing clock tower
Alternative nameJubilee Clock Tower

Historical context

Date built1888
Commemorated eventQueen Victoria's Golden Jubilee
Historical contextBuilt during a period when many towns erected Jubilee clock towers for Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee
Related traditionOne of several Jubilee clocks built in towns and cities across the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth

Creator

Associated engineerMagnus Volk, a British engineer from the Brighton area
Time ball designerMagnus Volk
Competition for designChosen through a town-organized architectural competition won by John Johnson
Commissioned byJames Willing, a local advertising contractor and entrepreneur
ArchitectJohn Johnson, a London architect

Discovery and provenance

Donation£2,000
Foundation stone laid20 January 1888, on James Willing's 70th birthday
Construction site historyThe site had a small waiting shelter by 1880; a replacement-building competition in 1881 was won by Henry Branch and Thomas Simpson, but their plans were never executed and the site remained vacant until 1888
OpeningOpened soon after 1888

Physical characteristics

Clock facesFour
Base shapeSquare
Height75 feet
Clock face diameter5 feet
Mast height above the tower4.9 m (16 feet)

Materials

Base materialPink granite
Column materialPink granite
Main structure materialPortland stone
Dome roof coveringCopper-scaled roof

Technique

Columns styleCorinthian

Appearance

Former usePublic toilets once stood under the structure
Clock dial inscriptionJAMES WILLING and 1887
Weather vaneWeather vane topped with James Willing's initials
FriezeFrieze formed by enclosed balusters
Time ballHydraulically operated copper sphere on a 90-foot mast, rising and falling every hour
DomeTopped by a dome with a copper fish-scale roof
CorniceOrnate cornice with small turrets at each corner
Ship motifA protuberance designed to resemble the gunwale of a ship
Upper wall treatmentRusticated stone walls decorated with pilasters and narrow round-headed recesses
Arched recessesEach side has an arched recess containing a mosaic medallion portrait of a member of the Royal Family
Directional inscriptionsInscribed with TO THE STATION, TO KEMP TOWN, TO THE SEA, and TO HOVE, clockwise from north
Decorative detailsElaborately carved scrollwork below the pediments
Structural arrangementTapering Corinthian columns rise part way up each side to pediments with open bases
StyleClassical with Baroque touches; Pevsner also saw Gothic elements in the upper section
Corner statuesCarved stone statues of female figures at the corners of the base

Location and ownership

Listing date26 August 1999
Grade II meaningBuilding of special interest
Listing reasonArchitectural and historical importance
Heritage listingGrade II listed by English Heritage
Landmark statusMajor landmark in Brighton and Hove
SettingCentre of Brighton; focal point of the commercial heart of the city
LocationJunction of North Street, Western Road, West Street, and Queen's Road, Brighton, East Sussex, England, United Kingdom

History and restoration

Time ball operationBased on electrical signals transmitted from the Royal Observatory, Greenwich
Time ball fateDisabled after a few years because of complaints about the noise it caused
Public sentimentResidents retain a nostalgic affection for it
Demolition sentimentIt has faced occasional vociferous demands for destruction and several threats of demolition
Survival reasonIts survival has been helped by local affection and the difficulty and expense of demolition or removal

Significance

Critical opinionOpinion is sharply divided: some describe it as idiosyncratic, showy, charmingly ugly, or a giant salt-cellar, while others praise it as extremely charming, delightful, or supremely confident and showy
Cultural significanceIt was a focal point of anti-Victorian sentiment in Brighton in the late 19th and early 20th centuries
Comparative functionFulfilled a similar function to the Albert Memorial in London's Kensington Gardens as a site of local and national demonstrations
Current significanceConsidered one of Brighton's most emblematic monuments
ImpactIts impact has been affected by intrusive street furniture