UK clocks go back one hour on Sunday, October 25, 2026, ending British Summer Time one day earlier than in 2025 – here’s everything you need to know about the clock change.
A sizzling summer has come to an end – and the long winter nights are just around the corner. Evenings are now noticeably shorter and temperatures are on the decline. Autumn also heralds the end of daylight saving time, a change often met with dismay in the UK. The earlier sunsets mean that workers can miss out on almost all of the day’s sunlight.
But at least there’s the consolation of an extra hour in bed when the clocks do go back. And that day will arrive earlier this year than in 2025.
While the clocks went back on Sunday, October 26 last year, in 2026 they’ll be set back an hour at 2am on Sunday, October 25, signalling the end of daylight saving time. A handy way to remember which way the clocks will change is ‘spring forward, fall back’, reports the Manchester Evening News.
Most modern devices, including smartphones and smartwatches, will update automatically at 2am on Sunday, reverting to 1am. Traditional clocks, however, will need to be adjusted manually.
This tradition of adjusting the clocks was introduced to maximise natural daylight. The shift means that mornings will be brighter, providing an extra hour of daylight, but it also means that darkness will descend earlier in the evening.
According to timeanddate.com, sunset today (6 September) is at 7.46pm in Manchester. However, the days will gradually become shorter, with sunset dropping to 6.48pm by Wednesday, 30 September, and falling further to 4.50pm on Sunday, 25 October – the day the clocks go back.
Looking forward, next year the clocks will spring forward on Sunday, 28 March 2027, and fall back on Sunday, 31 October 2027 – which is the latest possible date the clocks could go back in a year.