For over 45 years, 78-year-old Clive Pickering has been a resident of Kiama Downs, known not just for his long-standing community ties but also for his extraordinary passion for clock collecting and restoration. With a collection of over 70 clocks, including many towering 6-7½ foot grandfather clocks that he has painstakingly restored or built himself, Clive has earned a global reputation as being well versed in the field of horology.

Clive's story begins in Middlesbrough, Yorkshire, England, where he was born before emigrating to Warrawong, Australia, with his parents at the tender age of three. Growing up in the Illawarra, he nurtured a deep connection to craftsmanship, a passion encouraged by his carpenter father. This early influence laid the foundation for what would become a lifelong dedication to the art of restoring clocks and building for them period style replacement cases.

A familiar name among readers of the UK-based CLOCKS magazine, Clive has, for the past four decades been a regular contributor. His expertise as a period casemaker and restorer is highly regarded, with his insights reaching a global audience through the magazine's extensive distribution.

Clive specialises in the restoration and recasing of early Circa 1700 orphaned English longcase movements - mechanisms that have outlasted their original wooden cases, which often deteriorate after centuries of exposure to the elements. Over the course of ten trips to the UK, Clive meticulously tracked down and brought a significant number of these difficult to locate orphaned movements to Australia, where he recased them in the traditional manner.

He frequently uses well-figured local native Australian Red Cedar, Toona Ciliata, for his case-building projects, a timber renowned for its magnificent grains and admired by clock enthusiasts worldwide.

Interestingly, many grandfather clocks brought to the Australian colonies arrived as movement-only pieces, with their cases constructed locally by convict woodworkers using Red Cedar and other native timbers. Clive’s work continues this historical tradition, breathing new life into these horological treasures.

Remarkably, Clive's expertise was self-taught, honed through years of hands-on experience and guidance from his father. “For 38 of the past 55 years, I combined my passion for clock restoration, case building, and writing with a full-time career as a high school teacher,” Clive shares. As the Head of the Physical Education and Health Department at Kiama High for 11 years, he balanced his professional responsibilities with his deep-seated love for horology.

Clive’s journey into clock restoration began in 1987, when he stumbled upon an Ingraham American gingerbread clock in a junk shop in the Hunter Valley. Its case was in pieces, but Clive, a keen restorer of early cedar furniture, was captivated by the challenge. “From that day on, I was hooked on clocks,” he recalls.

To date, Clive has constructed 90 replacement cases for orphaned clock movements and restored countless others. His work often requires him to master various restoration arts, from crafting replacement parts to fretting out period-style clock hands, constructing brass-cased weights, and fabricating the myriad components needed for these intricate mechanisms - many of which are unobtainable in Australia.

Each project is a labour of love, with an average of 200 hours dedicated to constructing a high-quality replacement “period style” grandfather clock case. Among his most cherished restorations is a circa 1675 William Grimes “Londini” movement. Clive recounts, “Purchasing and restoring this rare early movement and then building a replacement period-style case in early hand-cut, thick English walnut veneer for the magnificent 1675 ten-inch engraved brass dial eight-day movement was just the most rewarding experience for me. It now features in horological texts and is the centerpiece of my collection.”

Clive Pickering’s dedication to his craft is not only a testament to his remarkable skill but also a celebration of the timeless beauty and intricate artistry of clockmaking. His work ensures that these historical treasures continue to tick on, preserving their legacy for future generations.