Big Ben to lose distinctive bongs for first time since 1956

London: Big Ben is losing its bongs - temporarily.

The famous bell in the clocktower of Britain's Houses of Parliament is to fall silent for a month of repairs, officials announced.

The House of Commons said on Wednesday the distinctive bongs would sound the hour for the last time at 8am on Saturday before four to six weeks of maintenance work on the clock.

Both the sonorous hourly bongs and the chimes that mark each quarter-hour will be silent for the first time since 1956, officials said.

In a statement, officials said a team of specialist "industrial rope-access technicians" would abseil down the tower's south clock face on Saturday. The team will spend a day cleaning and repairing the clock's four faces.

A backup electric system will keep the clock running during the weeks of maintenance.

The neo-Gothic tower, designed by Charles Barry, is one of London's most recognisable landmarks. It is popularly known as Big Ben, although the name actually refers only to the 13-tonne Great Bell inside.

A live broadcast of the 6 o'clock bongs precedes the British Broadcasting Corporation's early evening news radio bulletin. The BBC said during the repairs it would be replaced by the pips of the Greenwich Time Signal.