Taco Bell Brings Big Ben Back to Life to Celebrate London Openings

Big Ben may be out of action, but, on November 20th, a new bell stepped in to give it back its mojo. To mark the opening of four new restaurants across London, Taco Bell returned Big Ben’s world-famous chimes to the streets of the capital.

To do it, Taco Bell, with the help of specialist audio engineer Simon Little of UNIT9, re-engineered the sound of the Westminster Quarters, using the Taco Bell chime. Following this, multiple sets of custom made speakers capable of very narrow sound beams were installed around the area. These broadcast the sound of the bell every hour, bringing one of the city’s most iconic landmarks back to life. Better still, the speakers were designed to ensure mainly people walking nearby can hear the chimes, surprising and delighting pedestrians, policeman, politicians and more as they passed the signs telling them Big Ben is temporarily silenced for repairs.

“Knowing Big Ben was out of action for repairs, we felt Taco Bell was in a unique position to reunite London with the famous chimes,” said Jorge Torres, General Manager, Taco Bell Europe. “So, we used our bell to help out your big bell – and to do our bit for that special US/UK relationship at the same time. Londoners have been asking for Taco Bell to come to the Capital city for a long while now, and hopefully the opening of our new restaurants across the city will also be music to their ears!”