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'Not even Big Ben wanted to say farewell': Famous clock fails to strike at 8 pm to start minute's silence for Queen

The London landmark is supposed to ring 96 times during the Queen's funeral - once for each year of her life

LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM: The Big Ben, which was due to strike at 8 pm on Sunday, September 18, did not do so, as the world mourned the British Queen who passed away on Thursday, September 8. The London landmark is supposed to ring 96 times during the Queen's funeral - one for each year of her life - and royal experts are now worried it will stay silent during the event.

According to MSN, officials at the Houses of Parliament launched an 'urgent' investigation into what went wrong. The bell is housed in the Elizabeth Tower, named after Her Majesty in 2012 during her Diamond Jubilee.

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The editor in chief of Royal Central, Charlie Proctor, wrote on Twitter, "Parliamentary authorities are urgently investigating why Big Ben failed to chime this evening as planned during the national minute of silence."

In a follow-up tweet, he wrote, "Everybody is concerned as Big Ben needs to ring tomorrow 96 times - once for every year of her life."

Meanwhile, a parliament spokesperson told MailOnline, "Big Ben failed to strike at 8 pm as planned. We have investigated this as a matter of urgency and have identified a minor technical issue that has now been resolved."

The spokesperson added, "We will be testing the bell again later tonight and are confident that it will not affect the tolling tomorrow during the State Funeral procession."

The incident occurred during the minute of silence for the Queen during the National Moment of Reflection to remember the late Monarch, with the queue to see her lying-in-state halted and Prime Minister Liz Truss bowing her head outside Number 10.
 
As per the outlet, the bell was supposed to strike to initiate the National Moment of Reflection at 8 pm on September 18. Chris Ship, ITV's Royal Editor who noticed the issue, wrote on Twitter, "Big Ben (in the Elizabeth Tower) is tasked with tolling once every minute as the Queen’s coffin leaves @wabbey (Westminister Abbey)."

Social media users were appalled at the iconic clock's untimely failure. One said, "Omg I thought something happened it was a rubbish silence !!! Thought I had missed it." Another wrote, "I was wondering why. Maybe it wanted to pay its respect too." A third chimed in, "Perhaps the failure to ring is in itself a sign of mourning, unplanned like the rainbow." A fourth commented, "Not even Big Ben wanted to say farewell."

On the eve of Queen Elizabeth II's funeral, rainbows were witnessed above Westminster and Windsor as Londoners admired the gorgeous crimson sky over the Big Ben on Sunday, September 18. The Queen, who served as the nation's foremost figurehead for more than 70 years and was the longest-reigning monarch in British history, appeared to get a last farewell from the heavens.

In addition, rainbows could be seen above the line of mourners who had been waiting all night to view the Queen lying-in-state.