Alex Jeffrey
The Dial Clocks of the Palace of Westminster

Please note that due to date being so close to new year, and the White Hart barn in Godstone being closed for a kitchen refurbishment, our meeting will be at Soper Hall in Caterham on the 9th January.

When we speak of the Palace of Westminster, most of us will instantly think of Big Ben, a great clock which is such an iconic landmark, possibly the most revered heritage clock in Great Britain. Few of us know of the hundreds of other timepieces which grace these esteemed walls. After the great fire in 1834. Architects Sir Charles Barry and Augustus Pugin rebuilt in a gothic revival style, which with endless corridors still house some of the most opulent dial clocks from the very best manufacturers of their time. This talk will bring together the histories of these, including handwritten documents from renowned horologists, and how the in-house clock team of craftsmen navigate politicians, and have maintained these clocks. It tells their story over the last century and more.

During the summer I was lucky enough to meet and work with our speaker Alex Jeffrey, A young horologist who graduated a time served clockmaking apprenticeship with Thwaites and Reed in 2019. The same year he started his own clock company. Alex joined the in-house clock team at the Palace of Westminster in 2021 to work on the collection of heritage clocks across the estate. He also worked at the heart of the team which completed the restoration of the great clock of Westminster and is now clockmaker in residence at The Clockworks in South London. I hope you will join me in welcoming Alex to the South London Branch.

Duncan Greig.