THE chimes of Kendal's Town Hall clock may be music to the ears of some but not for nearby residents who are roused by the ringing, reports Lisa Frascarelli.

Those who have to listen to the bongs and chimes of All Through the Night all through the night have had enough.

Sick and tired of sleepless nights, Serpentine Road resident Graham Patten is one of many calling for the bells to be silenced in the wee small hours.

"It's a pain in the neck," he said. "It's fair enough during the day but I don't see the point of them ringing that painfully repetitive tune every 15 minutes through the night.

"I had friends up from Bristol who stayed a couple of nights the other week and they had two very restless nights because of the bells. Between midnight and 6am the clock should be silent, the rest of the time it's fine."

The optometrist claims he is not the only one disturbed by the bells but that "Great British apathy" had led to people moaning among themselves and no one bothering to formally complain.

"I'm going to complain to the council. We can't leave our windows open during the summer, it's ridiculous. I know some people who can't sleep in bedrooms facing the clock because it's so noisy."

Mr Patten, who has put up with the bongs for the past four years, added: "Some people will tell me to stop moaning but these are all people who don't have to listen to the bells all night."

South Lakeland District Council's information and public halls manager Dave Phillips said: "If somebody is unhappy with the sound of the bells they need to make a formal complaint to our environmental health officer Mark Richardson. A decibel test would then be carried out to see if it is a statutory nuisance under the Environmental Protection Act. If it is, there would then be a report to members."

The town hall clock was first rung on June 22, 1897 to mark the diamond jubilee of Queen Victoria. It was paid for by local philanthropist William Bindloss and it rings out a different tune each day of the week.