A landmark clock tower was finally unveiled today after more than a year of restoration work - only to display the wrong time.

Shoppers were pleased to see Brighton and Hove's famous city centre tower unwrapped in time for Christmas but at 10am the clock's hands were stuck at 11.40.

The tower, built for the golden jubilee of Queen Victoria in 1888, has been shrouded in scaffolding and tarpaulins for 18 months while £45,000 restoration work was carried out.

Plans to finish the restoration last month had to be put on hold because of high winds and heavy rain.

The work included restoring an original feature of the tower, the golden ball at the top of the tower which drops to mark every hour.

The last scaffolding was removed today.

A council spokesman said the time was incorrect because it was stopped while the scaffolding was removed.

Once the unveiling was complete, the tower would be inaugurated in a ceremony when the ball-lifting mechanism would be put into motion.

The tower has been fitted with a new bronze mast, complete with the 100 kilo gilded copper ball.