Winter has its perks if you like Christmas and expanding your coat collection but, after weeks of grey skies, many Brits cannot wait for better weather.

The arrival of March has meant fewer weeks until Easter – so start thinking about your chocolate egg options now – but also get ready for more daylight hours in the UK.

Traditionally, everyone in this time zone moves their clocks forward by an hour and, although everyone may get less sleep, mornings and evenings will be lighter and brighter.

The time is changed twice a year in the UK and the nation last pushed the clocks back by 60 minutes in October.

Why does the time change and what has it got to do with Coldplay’s Chris Martin?

Clocks are changed in the last week of March to mark the beginning of British Summer Time (BST), otherwise referred to as Daylight Saving Time.

It was first designed to help the population, and season-dependent farmers, maximise sunlight throughout the year.

It came into existence in 1916 through the Summer Time Act after a petition by British builder William Willet – the great-great-grandfather of Coldplay frontman Chris Martin.

It was believed the change would help save energy by reducing the amount of coal households consume and the act was passed during the First World War, when resources were stretched thin.

However, some said Willet’s motives for changing the clocks were also down to having his golf game cut short when the sun went down but, unfortunately for him, the law was implemented after his death.

The idea did not originate in the UK and the notion was first put on the table by American politician and inventor Benjamin Franklin, who said if people got up earlier everyone might save on candles.

When do the clocks go forward?

UK residents and everyone in this time zone will need to put their clocks forward by an hour on March 26, 2023, at 1am. BST lasts until October 29, 2023.

Lots of phones and smart gadgets will update automatically so be sure to check if you have to update manually.

Clocks move back an hour in October. If you can get over the Americanism, a fun way of remembering is by using the phrase “spring forward and fall back”.

This means the UK brings clocks forward in the spring and puts them back in the autumn or fall.