Charlie the news hound back on duty on Hunter Street

Charlie, the paparazzi dog, has rejoined his bunny-headed partner outside property developer Jeff McCloy's Hunter Street offices after he was removed in recent months for repairs.

The 150-kilogram bronze sculpture of a dog-headed photographer pointing his lens toward the court steps, where media types loiter through the week hoping to bag a front-page photo, was initially intended as a cheeky dig by the former lord mayor, but has since become one of the city's most loved installations.

Charlie is a favourite for visitors who stop almost daily for a photo with the whimsical pair, but sometimes that love turns rough as late-night hoons and wayward kids have been known to climb the art.

Mr McCloy, whose extensive collection of public art includes bird and koala statues at Medowie, a cow at Lochinvar, a pelican and fish at Teralba, an 800-kilogram bronze gorilla, and the imposing timber sculpture of a breaching whale currently installed at Fort Scratchley, considers Charlie one of his favourite pieces.

"I love that dog, but people come and put their kids on them or hang on them," Mr McCloy told Topics in January, "It drives you mad."

Of course, Charlie and Rabbitwoman aren't the only Gillie and Marc pieces in Mr McCloy's collection.

The former lord mayor has earmarked 13 animal sculptures by the Sydney-based husband and wife artistic outfit for McCloy Group's Loxford housing project on Cessnock Road near Maitland, joining other pieces at Edgeworth and Goonelabah, and yet another installation planned for the Driftwood Shores housing estate at Tuross Head on the south coast near Batemans Bay.

Driftwood Shores is also the destined home for Bleaching, the whale made from a 400-year-old fallen red gum created by Speers Point artist Michale Greve, on display at Fort Scratchley.

Mr McCloy acquired the piece in June last year after it won the Sculptures at Scratchley show in May.

"I think I've bought more public art in Newcastle than Newcastle City Council," Mr McCloy joked last month.

Mr McCloy, whose former home in Parkway Avenue, Bar Beach, features two rooftop cannons, has a penchant for buying large sculptures and paintings for his housing subdivisions and buildings and had Charlie installed in late 2018.

Speaking of fixer-uppers, the iconic clock atop City Hall has been keeping time in town for almost a century since the building, designed by architect Henry White opened in 1929, but it seems that lately one of the faces has been losing time.

A few locals have noticed in recent weeks that the eastern face appeared to be running about 20 minutes behind prompting the City's mechanical services team to call in some expert help.

"Due to the age and type of clock, a specialist has been engaged to assess the requirements for its repair and we are currently awaiting their arrival," the City of Newcastle told Topics last week.

The council poured $28 million into a conservation project on the 95-year-old building after 'concrete cancer' was found in the clock tower in 2012. Concrete cancer is caused when the steel reinforcing within a concrete slab begins to rust, expanding and displacing the surrounding concrete, causing it to become brittle and crack.

The original budget for restoring the sandstone facade was initially reported to be around $10 million before an analysis by the NSW Government Architects Office on behalf of Newcastle City Council, revealed the state of the building in October 2012.

Restoration works by Stone Mason and Artist were eventually completed in 2021. A recent assessment indicated no further evidence of the concrete cancer.