The Bank Holidays Act of 1871 introduced four days as bank holidays in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Scotland were given five days.
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| Busy bank holiday on Broadstairs beach (Viking bay) by William |
In England, Wales and Northern Ireland the days selected were Easter Monday, the first Monday in August, Boxing Day (26th December) and Whit Monday.
Scotland also had the first Monday in August. However, it had Good Friday,(instead of Easter Monday), Christmas Day,(instead of Boxing Day) and the first Monday in May,(instead of Whit Monday) plus New Year's Day. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, both Christmas Day and Good Friday were traditional days of rest and Christian worship and as such did not need to be included in the Act.
Northern Ireland were subsequently given bank holidays for St Patrick's Day (17 March) by a special Act of Parliament in 1903 and for the anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne (12 July) by the Governor of Northern Ireland in 1926.
The Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 is now the statutory basis for bank holidays following the repeal of the 1871 Act.
It made a number of changes to the days allocated following a trial period of the new arrangements between 1965 and 1970. Whit Monday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland was replaced by a fixed spring holiday on the last Monday in May. Similarly, the first Monday in August holiday was replaced by a bank holiday on the last Monday in August. However, the August bank holiday is still given as the first Monday in August in Scotland. Scotland was also granted an additional bank holiday of 2 January, although this was not enacted until 1973.
In 1974, Scotland was given Boxing Day as an additional bank holiday, while England, Wales and Northern Ireland gained New Year's Day as an additional bank holiday. The May bank holidays were also brought closer into line with the first Monday in May in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and the last Monday in May in Scotland, becoming additional bank holidays in 1978.
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| August Bank Holiday weather by Penny Mayes |
This weekend is the Summer Bank Holiday in England, Wales and Northern Ireland
It marks the end of the summer holidays before the return to school. A chance to soak up the last rays of sunshine and lie in the garden or park. Or is it?
Met Office forecasters are predicting a mix of weather over the Bank Holiday weekend.
"Around 50 mm of rain are expected locally across parts of England and Wales on Saturday, with winds potentially reaching 50 mph around southern coasts," said Met Office Chief Forecaster Eddy Carroll. However, he added "the weather is likely to improve for many during the latter part of the holiday weekend."
That's good news for the 3.6 million Brits VisitEngland expect to take an overnight break in the UK this weekend. VisitEngland’s Bank Holiday Trip Tracker found that 5.9 million people plan to take a day trip in the UK over the Bank Holiday weekend, with another 14.3 million still undecided. The most popular planned types of trip are a day out to the seaside or the countryside. One in five plan to visit a stand-alone attraction, such as a theme park or stately home.
And if you want to stay at home and have a few friends over, why not throw an end of summer murder mystery party? A great range of games are available from ITM Games. Just visit their website http://www.itmgames.co.uk
And please visit
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