Speaking clock

A speaking clock or talking clock is a live or recorded human voice service, usually accessed by telephone, that gives the correct time. The first telephone speaking clock service was introduced in France, in association with the Paris Observatory, on 14 February 1933. The format of the service is similar to that of radio time signal services. At set intervals (e.g. ten seconds) a voice announces (for example) "At the third stroke, the time will be twelve forty-six and ten seconds……", with three beeps following. Some countries have sponsored time announcements and include the sponsor's name in the message.

A speaking clock or talking clock is a live or recorded human voice service, usually accessed by telephone, that gives the correct time. The first telephone speaking clock service was introduced in France, in association with the Paris Observatory, on 14 February 1933. The format of the service is similar to that of radio time signal services. At set intervals (e.g. ten seconds) a voice announces (for example) "At the third stroke, the time will be twelve forty-six and ten seconds……", with three beeps following. Some countries have sponsored time announcements and include the sponsor's name in the message.

List by country

China

Dialling 117 in any city connects to a speaking clock that tells the current time in China. Currently 12117. Despite China spanning five time zones, only one time is kept over the country, therefore only one zone related service is required and the same time would be announced regardless of where the call was made. Rates are charged according to the ordinary local number, generally around 0.25 RMB/minute.

Ireland

In Ireland, the speaking clock ( ) was first offered by P&T in 1970, and was accessed by dialling 1191. It announced the time in 24-hour format, in English only, at ten second intervals punctuated by a high pitched signal, as follows: “At the signal it will be HH:MM and …… seconds (signal). P&T operator Frances Donegan was the original voice. Antoinette Rocks, also a P&T/Telecom Éireann operator, provided the voice of the speaking clock when it was updated to digital technology in 1980. Her voice was selected as part of a competition on a radio phone-in show, RTÉ Radio 1‘s Morning Call with Mike Murphy. Listeners voted for one of 8 voices. At its peak, it received almost three million calls a year (about 8,000 a day). The Irish speaking clock service was permanently shut down by eir (P&T’s successor) on 27 August 2018 due to lack of use and reliance on ageing equipment.

Italy

In Italy, the speaking clock service was established in the 1940s, under the name "Ora esatta," and featured a mechanical female voice. It was originally accessed by dialing 16, later changed to 161. Currently, the number to call is 42161, operated by TIM, the national operator.

In popular culture

The United Kingdom speaking clock appears at the end of the track "Pulstar" on the 1976 album Albedo 0.39 by electronic musician Vangelis. A synchronized collection of speaking clocks makes up the track "Time Zones" on Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark's 1983 album Dazzle Ships.

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1373755674 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.