The old Echo clock, which hung outside the Southern Daily Echo Offices in Above Bar Street, will soon be showing off its shiny new face, said restoration expert, Mark Holman.

The clock, which was "an important part of Southampton's history," was given to Mr Holman, of Fork Handle Revival, who used to work for the newspaper, and was kept at the paper's former Redbridge offices.

Mark, 50, told the Daily Echo: "The clock has gone to be painted, all the metalwork has been finished, and we move onto the next big stage.

"My friend and big supporter, Lee, a motorbike painter, has stopped everything and volunteered to paint the clock.

"He has cancelled all of his appointments for a whole week in order to help us out for free. We had to remove the doors to his workshop to bring it inside and he was shocked to see how big she truly is! "

Several local professional engineering firms have offered to assist in the restoration of the timepiece, which is in "quite a decent condition".

Lee will be painting the clock satin black after which he will hand it over to Mark for final touches and other installation. Mark intends to modify the hands of the clock and add modern LED lights to it.

Born and bred Southampton, Mark added: "We are gathering all the missing parts and finishing up all the impairments necessary. Realistically, the clock will be ready by next year.

"It's quite iconic - growing up, all my friends would meet up 'under the Echo clock'. It's an important part of our history, it would be good to get it back."