Editing Speaking clock (section)

==== Usage ====
In the [[United Kingdom]], the speaking clock can be heard by dialling 123 on a [[BT Group|BT]] phone line; the number may vary on other networks.  Every ten seconds, a voice announces:

{{blockquote|At the third stroke, the time from BT will be (hour) (minute) and (second) seconds.}}

The service was started in 1936 by the General Post Office (which handled telephones at that time) and was continued by BT after its formation in 1980 and [[privatisation]] in 1984. Between 1986 and 2008, the message included the phrase "sponsored by Accurist"; Accurist withdrew their sponsorship in 2008.<ref name='guardian_accurist' />  The "from BT" part was added, then removed at some point, then reinstated.{{citation needed|date=February 2019}}

For times that are an exact minute, "precisely" is substituted for the seconds portion of the announcement.  Similarly, announcements for times between the hour and one minute past the hour substitute "o'clock" for the (zero) minutes.  Other operators run their own speaking clocks, with broadly similar formats, or redirect to BT's service.  [[Virgin Media]] have their own service available by dialling 123 from a Virgin Media line.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cableforum.uk/board/showthread.php?t=33654855|title=BT speaking clock is no more on Virgin Media and T-Mobile! - Cable Forum|website=Cable Forum}}</ref> Sky also have their own service accessible by dialling 123 from a Sky telephone line.  Dialling 123 from a few mobile services, such as [[O2 (UK)|O2]], also obtains a speaking clock service. The [[Giffgaff]] network uses the same service as O2. The service is not available on the [[Hutchison 3G|3]] mobile telephone network, as they use 123 as the number for their voicemail services.  It was also unavailable on the [[Orange (UK)|Orange]] network for the same reason.

On the occasion of a [[leap second]], such as at 23:59:60 on December 31, 2005, there is an extra second pause between the second and third beeps, to keep the speaking clock synchronised with [[UTC|Coordinated Universal Time]]: "At the third stroke, the time from BT will be, twelve o'clock precisely. Beep, Beep, <pause> Beep."  The current UK time source is the [[National Physical Laboratory, UK]].{{citation needed|date=August 2021}}

In 2011, the BBC reported: "The service still receives 30 million calls each year."<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-14198506  Speaking Clock: Why are people still dialling for the time?]</ref>