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When does it get light in 2024 and why do clocks change in the UK?

When does it get light in 2024 and why do clocks change in the UK?

The clocks "spring forward" in March to mark the beginning of British Summer Time, which means we'll lose one hour of sleep.

In the UK, the custom of changing the clocks twice a year has been around for more than a century.

We still have a short while until clocks change, therefore, make the most of your sleep before summertime comes around.

In 2019, the European parliament voted to scrap mandatory daylight saving but Britain has no plans to, err, see the light.

This is what it all means for the UK.

When does it get light in 2024?

The clocks will once more go forward for the start of British Summer Time on Sunday, March 31, 2024.

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The clock will jump from 1am to 2am, which might be a surreal experience for anybody closely watching their digital device. Of course, manual clocks will have to be wound forward.

They will go back again on Sunday, October 27 - when the time will jump from 1.59am to 1am.

Why does the time change?

Clocks are changed in the last week of March to mark the beginning of British Summer Time (BST), otherwise referred to as Daylight Saving Time.

It was first designed to help the population, and season-dependent farmers, maximise sunlight throughout the year.

It was believed the change would help save energy by reducing the amount of coal households consume and the act was passed during the First World War, when resources were stretched thin.

What does it all have to do with Chris Martin of Coldplay?

The British Summer Time came into existence in 1916 through the Summer Time Act after a petition by British builder William Willet – the great-great-grandfather of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin.

However, some said Willet’s motives for changing the clocks were also down to having his golf game cut short when the sun went down but, unfortunately for him, the law was implemented after his death.

The idea did not originate in the UK, and the notion was first put on the table by American politician and inventor Benjamin Franklin, who said if people got up earlier, everyone might save on candles.

An ancestor of Chris Martin petitioned the government of the day to introduce DST (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)
An ancestor of Chris Martin petitioned the government of the day to introduce DST (Kevin Winter / Getty Images)