Headlines
Man who scaled London's 'Big Ben' clock tower appears in court
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 10, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on March 10, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 24, 2026
Daniel Day climbed Big Ben in a pro-Palestinian protest, causing disruption and facing court charges. The case is adjourned until March 17.
LONDON (Reuters) - A man who climbed part way up the 'Big Ben' clock tower at London's Palace of Westminster early on Saturday and stayed there all day as part of a pro-Palestinian protest, appeared in court on Monday.
Clutching a Palestinian flag, Daniel Day, 29, scaled 25 metres (82 feet) up the building, officially known as the Elizabeth Tower, at about 7:20 a.m. on Saturday, remaining there for 16 hours until agreeing to come down, his lawyer and prosecutors told London's Westminster Magistrates' Court.
He was subsequently charged by police with climbing and remaining on the tower which created "a risk or caused serious harm to the public", and also trespassing on a protected site.
Prosecutors said Day's actions had led to serious disruption in that area of central London with roads closed and buses diverted, and the cancellation of parliamentary tours had cost 25,000 pounds ($32,300).
Day's lawyer said he would plead not guilty to the first charge, saying his action was designed to spread awareness regarding the situation in Gaza and Britain's response to it.
The second charge of trespass requires the authorisation of the attorney general, and so the case was adjourned until March 17 for a decision to be made.
Day, from a seaside town in eastern England, was remanded in custody, with his supporters clapping and shouting "Hero" and "Free Palestine" as he was led away.
Lindsay Hoyle, the speaker of parliament's House of Commons, which is also located in the Palace of Westminster, said he had asked for a review of the incident.
($1 = 0.7745 pounds)
(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Sachin Ravikumar)
Daniel Day climbed 25 metres up the Big Ben clock tower as part of a pro-Palestinian protest and remained there for 16 hours.
He has been charged with climbing and remaining on the tower, which created a risk to the public, and with trespassing on a protected site.
Supporters of Day clapped and shouted phrases like 'Hero' and 'Free Palestine' as he was led away after his court appearance.
His case has been adjourned until March 17 for a decision regarding the trespassing charge.
The protest led to serious disruption in central London, resulting in closed roads, diverted buses, and the cancellation of parliamentary tours.
Explore more articles in the Headlines category
