Machynlleth's £50,000 for final phase of clock work

Machynlleth town clock was built in 1873

The final phase of work to restore a town clock is set to start after an appeal fund received nearly £50,000 in lottery funding.

The revamp in Machynlleth, Powys, which is costing about £200,000, involves re-pointing masonry and replacing its ageing mechanism.

Repairs to the 78ft (23.7m) Victorian timepiece started a year ago.

The appeal has been awarded £49,700 from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) for the final phase of work.

The appeal, which started seven years ago, has raised £30,000.

It has also received £91,000 from Powys council, which has also offered an additional small grant.

Councillor Glenda Jenkins, the chair of Machynlleth Town Clock Appeal, said she expected the work to start soon and would be completed in the early part of next year.

Mrs Jenkins said: "I'm absolutely delighted and thrilled.

"I'm pleased that organisations like Powys council and HLF have recognised the importance of the clock to the town.

"It's been hard work, but a day rarely passes that someone doesn't ask me about the town clock and that has given me the impetus to carry on."

Mrs Jenkins, who started the fundraising campaign seven years ago, has organised a string of events, and even made an appeal for money through Welsh newspapers in Australia and the United States in 2005.

In 2003, she received a signed book and photo from Welsh movie star Ioan Gruffudd for auction.

Meanwhile, a couple from Hong Kong donated £1,000 to the appeal after visiting Machynlleth on holiday in 2002.

The town clock was built in 1873 to celebrate the 21st birthday of Viscount Castlereagh, the son of the fifth Marquess of Londonderry, who lived at Y Plas in Machynlleth.