Why Kirkcaldy Town House clock has lost its hands and when they will be repaired

The device has sat without its hands for a number of months, and Fife Council has now revealed why in a new planning application. All four sets were in a poor condition, and one had broken, so workmen removed them.

Now the local authority has submitted a formal planning application for listed building consent to carry out repairs and also refurbish the weathervane which sits above it.

The weathervane and the copper sphere were removed early in 2021 after they started to list to the side. During the operation to remove these, a section of steel fixing tube it was mounted on could not be removed and remains 'trapped” within the tower.

Internal access up through the tower to retrieve was not possible due to the confined space of the original design so the council wants to temporarily remove the copper cladding around the tower to allow the the tubing to be taken down for inspection of the existing supporting structural frame of the tower with any defects or weaknesses repaired and strengthened. The existing cladding panels would also be inspected, repaired and reinstated if required.

The planning application also wants to sort out the clock hands.

All four sets were described in planning papers as “in extremely poor condition” with one hand already broken and another having been blown away during high winds earlier this year. If left unattended, this presents a potential risk of the other hands breaking off and falling from the tower.

Workmen have removed them with a view of replacing with new copper replicas as part of the proposed refurbishment work.

The hands are operated via a single mechanism which has the disadvantage of all the hands stopping should the motor fail- so they then show the wrong time. The application also wants to replace this with four individual motors.

The clock tower was designed by David Carr of Edinburgh. The vane was designed by Thomas Hadden of Edinburgh. They have been part of the building since it opened in 1937.

Councillors will consider the application in due course.