TIME has finally caught up with Abergavenny Town Hall’s clock,

The town’s beloved ticker has become a victim of progress.

Moves are now afoot for the creaking mechanism to be wound automatically instead of manually.

Town councillors heard at their monthly meeting that the physical act of winding the old timepiece each week is now the subject of health and safety concerns.

And the best way to resolve the issue is to fix a neat, labour-saving automatic winder…at a cost of up to £4,000.

Councillors heard that County Hall officers are expected to make some comments on the way forward in the near future.

A report before the council said, “This is an important landmark in the town - and it needs to be well maintained.”

The cost element involved has yet to be decided.

Built in 1871 by Gilbert and Bland of Croydon the two bell clock was presented to the town by Crawshay Bailey of Maindiff Court. Its north face is said to have been painted black as a tribute to Prince Albert who died in 1861.

The clock’s chimes have long been a feature of daily life in the town and famously are the inspiration for a well known athletic challenge set by Abergavenny sprinter Fred Cooper in the early 1900s.

Cooper, who was born in Monk Street, was the first man in Britain to run the 100 yard sprint in ten seconds and challenged himself to run the distance from the town hall to the Swan Hotel in the time it took the clock to strike twelve.

Cooper failed by about one strike and in the next six decades or so many of the area’s best athletes, including well known runner Ken Flowers attempted the challenge and failed