Everyone across the UK was asked to ring a bell as loud as possible for three minutes at 08:12 BST on 27 July.

BBC: UK

If a leper wanted to approach a town, he had to do so at night and ring a bell to warn people of his presence.

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His route includes St Paul's Cathedral and a trip across the river to Southwark, where a lunchtime bell calling people to prayer is due ring out in Borough Market.

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Typically, the chief executives of big-IPO companies show up to ring the opening bell, a publicity stunt, but a coveted invitation nonetheless.

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Any sort of licensing deal would suffice as a stamp of approval by big pharma, and off they went to ring the NASDAQ opening bell.

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When something really important happened, like the Cuban revolution, a bell would ring and Joe would scoot out of his office, thirsting to be first in line for the news.

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It used to be that if a town wanted to communicate to its residents that there was an emergency, there was one tried-and-true method: ring a giant bell.

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Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget and head of the Campaign to Fix the Debt, even got to ring the opening bell at the NYSE today, with CEOs and other deficit deacons at her side.

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At 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 9 five little-known financial executives and a posse of their children and colleagues crowded onto the balcony of the New York Stock Exchange to ring the opening bell.

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