The 18-foot tall copper birds above the clock towers are the mythical Liver Birds, symbol of the city.  Local legend is that if they fly away, Liverpool will cease to exist.  There are a lot of legends; Liverpool is an 800 year old seaport. 

The clocks, 25-feet in diameter, are larger than those in London's "Big Ben" clock tower and are in fact the largest in Britain.  The clocks in both cities were built to give mariners the most accurate local time. These are said to be accurate to within 30 seconds per year- quite a feat for 1911.

The foreground statue is of Edward VII, successor of Victoria, who was king when the building was constructed 1907-1911.  Edward and the horse face the River Mersey and the floating landing stages used by the Mersey ferries.  Say "murzee" and you're pronouncing Mersey all proper like.