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Yorkshire Times
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Jan Harris
Deputy Group Editor
10:00 PM 25th October 2014
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British Summer Time Ends This Weekend

 
British Summer Time ends this weekend. Photo: Chris Downer
British Summer Time ends this weekend. Photo: Chris Downer
Clocks go back 1 hour tonight marking the end of British Summer Time.

That's right British Summer Time ends this weekend. The clocks will be changing on Sunday at 2am when we put the clocks back one hour.

Most of us struggle to remember if we put the clocks forward or back. This happens twice a year. In spring we go forward and in autumn back.

If you are one of the many who gets confused by whether to put the clock back or forward remember the saying "Spring forward, fall back".

So what does this mean?
Yes we will all gain one hour's sleep tonight but that means the nights will be getting darker.

It also means that in the UK we'll be back on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) and sunrise and sunset will be about one hour earlier this Sunday than the day before - so there will be more light in the morning.

The theory behind daylight saving time, which dates back to 1895 and is observed by most of the Western world, is that people are generally more productive if daylight hours are extended in the evenings. British Summer Time was first implemented in 1916 and aside from a few deviations during wartime, it has remained ever since.

Experts say that because we all tend to rely on technology most of us will forget to put our clocks back this weekend.

Samsung UK did a survey of 2,000 people and over a quarter didn't know that the clocks changed this weekend and 51% said they wouldn't remember to change their clocks unless prompted. We live in a digital world and 41% said they would check the time on their phone first which would be done automatically.

The clocks went forward by one hour at 1am on the last Sunday in March - meaning Sunday, March 30.

The clocks go back one hour at 2am on the last Sunday in October, to Greenwich Mean Time. This year the clocks will go back on October 26