Clock winder retires after 32 years

A clock winder has retired after keeping time for a town since 1992.

Once a week, come rain or shine, 76-year-old Graham Tebbs would climb a ladder up to Yarm Town Hall clock and wind the mechanism manually.

He said he had "never forgotten in 32 years" and never thought "oh no I've got to do the clock".

The town council presented him with a letter of thanks, a £100 voucher and a framed picture of him inside the clock.

Mr Tebbs revealed that he had given people a helping hand over the years with the clock's time.

"It was always either right or a little bit fast, half a minute or a minute. But never ever slow, never - in case people missed the bus."

He said he would listen to the radio or phone the speaking clock to get the correct time.

Later he used a watch that received a signal from the atomic clock, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

He also recalled the clock stopping a few times during his tenure.

"The pendulum snapped once, so I made a new spring out of an old saw and machined it in my workshop.

"I think I charged the council £25. It lasted for years," he said.

"It stopped a time or two with the weather when the pointers froze, but I went down, warmed it up and gave it a bit of a shake."

During a council meeting in Mr Tebbs' honour, Councillor Barbara Wegg said: "He tells me he's enjoyed every second of doing it, and I thoroughly believe that.

"You were one of the most important people in Yarm, because everyone looks at that clock."

Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [email protected]