Our London Tour on Wednesday (highly recommend: Glen at http://www.grentours.co.uk/) took us through the East End of London and past the Whitechapel Bell Foundry.
The door was open, and we could see the bells in progress on the foundry floor… pretty cool, since this place is listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the oldest manufacturing company in Great Britain. The Foundry has produced many famous bells including Big Ben. (Elizabeth Tower is often mistakenly called Big Ben, but Big Ben is actually the bell inside the tower.)
Another notable? The Liberty Bell in Philadelphia. The bell cracked when first rung and it was locally recast prior to its use in the proclamation of American Independence. Apparently, all in good fun, some protestors ‘picketed’ outside the foundry a few years ago, proclaiming ‘faulty goods provided’ and requesting the company ‘make good on the warranty.’ The foundry responded that if the bell were just returned in its original packaging, they would be happy to oblige.