"It's been set up so that my dad's statue can still face towards the tower too, which is a nice touch, " he said.

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Part of me was transported back to this same stony spot eight centuries before, gazing in wonder at that tower face in pristine splendour, wrapped in the awe this kingly complex compelled.

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And when the council was planning a face-lift for the tower blocks, it asked the police which designs would best prevent crime.

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But there is still a desolate no-man's land in the centre which has hardly changed since we visited last year, except for a clock tower with even less of a face.

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Every time the tower was reduced to rubble and dust, the face belonging to the hand would appear.

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Then it all came into focus: a single tower, 9m high, topped with a massive magnificent carved face, surrounded by the jungle, with no one else around for miles.

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Although most pits have long gone she has a long standing friendship with Tower Colliery where she has been allowed access to the pit face while the miners have been working.

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