Big Ben refers to the 13 ton bell in the clock tower of Westminster Palace. Opinion is divided as to whether it was named after the then Commissioner of Works, or a famous prize-fighter of the time.
Built in 1703 for the Duke of Buckingham, George III acquired it in 1762 as a private house. It became an official royal residence in the reign of Queen Victoria, when it was greatly enlarged.
The famous illuminated advertising of Piccadilly Circus began as early as 1893, before most of the city had electric street lighting.
