UK and Ireland Advance Clocks to BST on March 29, 2026

As the United Kingdom and Ireland emerge from a harsh winter, residents can look forward to brighter evenings with the annual switch to British Summer Time on Sunday, March 29, 2026. At 1 a.m., clocks will advance one hour, creating longer days in the late afternoon and evening while shortening morning light, a change that applies across the region and aligns with practices in other European Union member states.

This adjustment marks the official start of Daylight Saving Time, or BST in the UK, and comes a day earlier than the previous year, when the change occurred on March 30. The move provides an extra hour of evening daylight, with sunsets pushing later into the night. For instance, parts of Northern Ireland, such as County Fermanagh, will see sunsets after 8 p.m. shortly after the switch. In London, the first post-8 p.m. sunset is expected around April 17, while Edinburgh anticipates it on April 6, Cardiff on April 10, and Birmingham on April 12. By mid-April, sunsets across much of the region will extend to about 8:30 p.m., reaching nearly 9 p.m. by month's end.

The shift also delays morning sunrises temporarily. Days have been lengthening since the winter solstice on...