Here Comes (British) Summertime!

Date: 25th March

Let’s face it, things have been bleak, so Sunday 28 March is definitely a date for your diary. This year we’re more than ready for lighter, brighter times as British Summer Time (BST) kicks in.

Daylight Saving Time has our clocks going forward on the last Sunday of March, until the last Sunday of October when they go back again. This means that on Sunday 28th March, you might lose an hour in bed and wake up a little sleepier than usual but this is perhaps a small price to pay for longer, lighter summer evenings. 

Did you know….?

  • In the UK, the longest day has 16 daylight hours and 38 minutes of sunlight in June, otherwise known as the summer solstice.
  • Changing the clocks at the end of March and October has been in place since 1972.
  • In 1784, Benjamin Franklin suggested that people could use less candle wax by getting up earlier and making good use of natural daylight.
  • William Willett introduced the idea of Daylight Saving Time in Britain in 1907.
  • The Royal Collection has to change over 50,000 clocks across all of the Queen’s residences twice a year. These include organ clocks, astronomical clocks, musical clocks and mechanical clocks.