All the Bells rings in the Olympics

Olympic fever is sweeping the country as London limbers up for the launch of the Olympics this weekend, and on Friday morning there will be a very noisy reminder that the games are about to start. At 8.12am, the country will wake up to the sound of thousands of bells being rung as loudly as possible for three minutes. It’s not a sadistic joke aiming to jolt us grumbling from our sleep, and make non-sports fans even more disgruntled, but a giant, participatory artwork by conceptual artist Martin Creed. A former Turner Prize winner, Creed is best known for artworks such as ‘Work No. 227: the lights going on and off’, which involved the lights going on and off in a room, and ‘Work No 409’, which redefined elevator music by installing a recording of a musical scale that rose and fell with the movement of the lift in Birmingham’s Ikon gallery. Part of the Cultural Olympiad that is taking place this year alongside the sporting events, Creed’s latest work is dubbed ‘All the Bells’, and everyone’s invited to join in, whether they’re a church bell ringer or merely want to tinkle their doorbell or bicycle bell. There are ringing events organised in towns and cities up the land – check the website below to find one near you.

Fri 27 Jul, Nationwide, 8am, Free, www.allthebells.com

Image: CIDSE