One of the surest signs that summer is over is the turning back of the clocks by one hour in the autumn.
The longest day of 2022 was June 21, and the nights have been drawing in gradually since then. Currently, the sun is setting just after 7pm — but this will continue to get earlier throughout the remainder of the year.
In October, the clocks will go back, meaning we will lose an extra 60 minutes of light at the end of the day. However, there is a logical reason why the clocks change twice per year.
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Shifting the clocks back by one hour in the autumn, and then forward by one hour in the spring, can be very confusing. However it was originally done to help maximise the amount of daylight.
Here is everything you need to know about when the clocks will go back in 2022. We will also answer why they do, and whether you will get an extra hour of sleep.
When do the clocks go back in 2022?
Every year, the clocks move back by one hour on the last Sunday of October. Therefore, the clocks will go back on October 30.
The change will happen at 2am, and after this time will officially revert to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). The majority of devices with a digital clock will automatically adjust the time, but analogue clocks will need to be manually changed.
Will we get an extra hour of sleep?
While the sun will set earlier after the clocks go back, the good news is that we will get an extra hour in bed.
For those waking up on October 30, it will feel like an hour later than it actually is. So, people who naturally wake at 8am will find it to be 7am on Sunday morning when they awake — giving them an extra hour in bed.
Why do the clocks go back?
The clocks must move back every year in the autumn in order to realign clocks with GMT. The time between the end of March and the end of October, when the clocks are moved ahead by one hour, is referred to as British Summer Time (BST).
The reason clocks are moved back and forward throughout the year is to maximise the amount of daylight that people see. The concept was pioneered by a man called William Willett.
Willett was an Edwardian builder who theorised that people in the UK were not making the most of daylight during the summer when the sun rises earlier. In order to help people see as much sunlight as possible — and to save on energy — he launched a campaign to move clocks forward by one hour in the summer and back by one hour during the winter.
The UK Government didn't implement the plans until 1916 during World War I — one year after Willett died — though his legacy lives on. He is also the great-great-grandfather of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin.
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