London landmarks turn lights off for Earth Hour

The clock tower at the Houses of Parliament before and during Earth Hour Credit: Anthony Devlin/PA Wire

Some of London's most famous landmarks plunged into darkness as millions of people turned off their lights as part of an hour-long international switch-off to raise awareness about climate change.

The Elizabeth Tower, widely known as Big Ben, Buckingham Palace and Tower Bridge all took part in the World Wide Fund for Nature's Earth Hour.

The event, which took place in the UK from 8.30pm yesterday, saw more than 700 landmarks around the world switch off their lights, including Christ the Redeemer in Brazil, France's Eiffel Tower and more than 30 Unesco World Heritage Sites.

....and after Credit: Anthony Devlin/PA Wire

Earth Hour was launched in 2007 in Australia and has since spread around the world.

Last year nine million people in the UK took part as part of a record-breaking chain of 162 countries.

The Houses of Parliament in darkness Credit: Anthony Devlin/PA Wire