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PA Enterprise
Nine things you might not know about bank 5. The place in the world with the most public
holidays holidays?
Everyone loves a long weekend. An extra 24 The country with the highest number of public
hours to switch off, watch three-part specials on holidays is India, with a whopping 21 days! In
the telly, supervise a slow roast or, if you’re lucky, comparison, England and Wales only have eight
a barbecue whilst hiding under a golf umbrella. public holidays in total: New Year, Good Friday,
But who invented these extra days off? Why are Easter Monday, May Day, late May bank holiday,
they called bank holidays? And why are there August bank holiday, Christmas Day and Boxing
not one, but two, in May? Read on for some Day.
surprising facts.
6. We almost have the least amount of public
1. The August bank holiday wasn’t always late holidays in the world
This August bank holiday was initially introduced The only country with fewer public holidays than
as a way to give us all a chance to make the us is Mexico, coming in with just seven days. ¡Ay,
most of the summer. But it didn’t always fall on caramba!
the last Monday of the month. Up until 1971 it
always took place on the first Monday of August. 7. May Day bank holiday was almost moved to
It was eventually moved as it clashed with the October
traditional two week shut down that many In 2011 parliament debated replacing the May
companies went through in the summer. Day bank holiday with a different holiday in
October. This would have spread out the bank
2. We used to have 33 of them holidays a bit more evenly throughout the year.
Up until 1834 there were 33 public holidays in These plans were scrapped.
the U.K., consisting of saint’s days and religious
festivals. But some spoil sport considered this to 8. There is a second bank holiday in May
be excessive, so in 1834 the number was reduced originally because of Whit Monday
to just four. The second bank holiday in the month of May
exists because it used to be held on the day-
3. Yes, we have a banker to thank for them off in the Christian calendar after Whit Sunday
It was liberal politician and banker Sir John or Pentecost. Whit Sunday always falls seven
Lubbock who authored the Bank Holidays Act Sundays past Easter Sunday. Since 1971 however,
of 1871, which made these four public holidays this bank holiday has always been held on the
official. last Monday of the month.
4. They used to be called St Lubbock’s Days 9. The second May bank holiday wasn’t officially
For a while some called the first bank holidays named
“St Lubbock’s Days” after the banker Sir John When the second bank holiday in May was
Lubbock. Funnily enough that didn’t stick. It was moved to the last Monday in May back in 1971, it
rumoured that Sir John Lubbock was so keen on was never given an official name. Unlike the May
cricket he chose the bank holiday dates to fall on Day bank holiday, or the August bank holiday,
the days when village matches were played in this holiday tends to either be called the Spring
his home county! True or not, the masses were bank holiday or the Late May bank holiday.
ecstatic with the holidays.
Whatever you call it, it’s a good opportunity to
take some away from your normal routine.
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