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Rejoice, Old Joe is finally being repaired after weeks of silence

We miss you old friend


Since the 15th February, the University of Birmingham has been in turmoil as our beloved clock tower, Old Joe, has stopped ticking.

A repair project that was meant to last a week has escalated to almost a month, meaning no bonging from Old Joe every hour.

As students had noticed, in early February, Old Joe was ringing for the hour at the wrong time. It was found that the world's tallest freestanding clock tower's pendulum had stopped swinging between 40 and 50 minutes past the hour.

Recent weather disruptions, like the horrendous 'Beast from the East' further delayed Old Joe's repairs and it wasn't until March 6th that the estates team were able to assess the damage.

It was found that Old Joe's bearings are faulty and the whole mechanism needs to be stripped and rebuilt.

With the University of Birmingham's identity on the line, will Old Joe be well enough for summer graduations or even to meet the British Summer Time on 25th March?