Clocks Go Back: The Semi-Annual British Time Travel Adventure
Each year without fail, the UK goes through a bizarre practice that makes little sense to many of us but still manages confound and confuse (and yet sometimes please) its populace – clock-changing.Syncopation is evidently lost on DadCREEN: 3 great new games you should play.Image How Many PS Vita Shipments Have Been Made To The US? Autumn is on the way and one of the early signs we're headed there again this year sees us move our clocks back, end British Summer Time (BST) which slips into history for another few months as reverting to Greenwich Mean Time (GMT). This is not some simple matter of shifting your wristwatch's hour hand; this ceremony — and it feels like one at times — involves equal parts befuddlement, negotiation, bewilderment.
A Bit of History
But before we get into the now, let us take a stroll through time real quick— who doesnt love some historical context? Daylight saving time seems like an inexplicable concept to many of us, but this idea that goes back all the way into early 20th century when people agreed on setting their clocks forward in order (supposedly) give themselves more daylight and make everything feel sparkling-new again. It was a grand thought, Move the clock up and more daylight at night. Rent — but also remember this was the era when they were testing out other crazy concepts, such as sending postcards to the moon.
By 1916, during World War I, the UK began using this notion as a strategy for fuel-saving. The clocks jumped forward and back with more brio than the average Briton can still explain. You could say that this ritual is less an exercise in time management and more a vehicle used to perpetually bewilder the British public.
The Big Clocks Go Back: Why?
When the last Sunday of October comes everything changes and in all clocks stop one hour, appearing two hours when its are 2 am again. Its a mini lottery win, just without the cash — more time to snuggle up under your duvet and day dream of all the things you avoided reaching that day. The clock reads two and no sooner does it turn back to one, making you feel as if you have been given an entire hour of “extra-time”. It's a blessing, right or just another excuse to be up at regular hours of tonight watching mindless television?
Ah, the British mindset! We moan about the weather, delays on the tube and that crazy time of year where our clocks change. You might as well tell people that the clocks are going back and therefore you will have to attend a three-hour seminar on shoe lace manufacture. But there's an upside: at least for one more hour you can tell others that your are "living in the past".
The Impact on Daily Life
Times change — literally, when the clocks go back to GMT and ripple effects through everyday activity.
1. The Morning Commute
It should go without saying — but we will anyway: the morning commuter, of course. This spare hour of darkness has your 7AM train to work feeling like an initiation for black ops. Commuters groan en mass, shuffling onto the platform like a battalion of human seals supporting each and every last one holding their coffees up just enough to prevent spillage. “Why do I do this to myself?” they lament. And yet, they can still form a single file queue as only the British know how; proof again of their uncanny quality to put up with any old rubbish.
2. The Evening Slump
At 5pm, when outside looks like midnight it qualifies as seasonal affective disorder (SAD) During this time of year, you may just be googling “how to make my living room less like a cave” and that you need some more lighting, but alas the search results will suggest lamps. All at once the homey comfort of your cozy abode transforms into an enticing fortress against encroaching despair, inescapable with those lengthening evenings.
3. Caffeine Consumption
Those clocks going back also kick starts my caffeine intake for another year, ah well. Coffee shops see an influx of people comforting themselves with warm coffee. As the baristas get a little extra espresso to keep us running, you can hear their communal Christian sigh. The sun sets at 4 pm *LINE FOR PUMPKIN SPICE LATTE TRANSFORMS INTO BLACK FRIDAY*
British Cultural Adaptation
And oh so predictably, in our quintessentially British way we have simply learnt to perform all of our normal rituals and customs under its spell. I think there is an unwritten understanding between friends to congregate for “dark evenings” where we all have to share our most humiliating childhood memory and the love of mulled wine appears. Its a time of bonding, laughter and pretending like the early darkness affects nobody—wink wink.
Of course, you do get the usual old jokes that come thicker than fast food in a high street, too. “Why do the clocks go back? For the sun to catch up!” Cue the groans and eye rolls. Luckily we all love a good dad joke deep down.
The Biannual Debate
The clock change sparks an annual firestorm: should we keep flipping the clocks? This is while the longer nights have other who think we should live on permanent British Summertime. All that sunshine to be had! they announce, as if sunshine is some sort of all-healing elixir. And, for the record, defenders of the old ways still make their stand: Give us GMT; a little dark will help your soul. They imagine pandemonium of children knocking at doors after sundown more than a game that kicks off at 8 PM under the lights.
Feeling like you killed it and need to bask in your glory for 30 more minutes, only when macros are off do people still suggest we should just abandon the whole idea all together — since sundials. Can you imagine? “Apologies for being tardy, but I was using the sundial in my backyard! That sounds like fun. BUT… I worry that we would end up bickering about who owns the best sundial on the street.
A Time for Reflection
As the clocks fall back, it’s also a time for reflection. What have we achieved in the past year? What were our resolutions that, let’s be honest, we barely started? The extra hour almost begs for some soul-searching, perhaps even a mini existential crisis. Yet, while you’re pondering life’s mysteries, remember that the more pressing question is: what to do with that extra hour?
Here’s a tip: it’s the perfect opportunity to watch an extra episode of your favorite show guilt-free. Or maybe it’s time to dive into that book that’s been sitting on your shelf gathering dust. Whatever you choose, just know that you have a whole 60 minutes of “free” time to figure it out!
The Wrap-Up: Embracing the Chaos
So, as the clocks go back this October, embrace the chaos, the confusion, and the occasional dark thoughts. Whether you’re snuggled up on the couch, half-heartedly planning to start a new hobby, or grappling with the reality of British weather, remember that this ritual is a shared experience. It’s part of what makes us uniquely British—our collective ability to moan, laugh, and adapt in the face of changing times.
So, when the clock strikes two and becomes one, don’t just sit there pondering the meaning of time; grab your cup of tea (or something stronger), settle in for the long evenings, and enjoy the little quirks of life that come with the clocks going back. After all, time is what you make of it, even if it is a bit confusing at times!