When are the bank holidays across 2022? Full list of dates to keep in your diary

A four day weekend over Easter sounds perfect for many workers across Newcastle, but there are plenty of other chances for eight extended weekends throughout the year.

The UK has already seen one bank holiday this year. This came on January 3 as a replacement for the regular day off on New Year’s Day. This year January 1 fell on a Saturday, meaning the bank holiday was shifted to the next working day.

Easter produces a four day weekend for most workers in England and Wales with Good Friday and Easter Monday marked as bank holidays. The second of these days were part of the original bank holiday plan, when four were introduced in 1871.

The other days included Whit Monday which was taken from the Christian calendar, the first Monday in August and Boxing Day if it fell on a weekday.

These days, workers don’t need to wait too long after Easter to get a three day weekend thanks to the early May bank holiday. This occurs on the first Monday of May and falls on May 2 this year. This was introduced in 1978 to mark International Labour Day by the Government at the time.

One month later there is another opportunity for a three day weekend thanks to the Spring Bank Holiday on June 2. This is the remanence of the Whit Monday bank holiday and, although it usually falls at the end of May, this year it has been moved to the start of June to coincide with the UK’s next bank holiday the following day.

This June 3 holiday is to celebrate the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. The additional two days off fall on a Thursday and Friday allowing the population to enjoy a full four days off.

The summer months see another bank holiday, this time on Monday August 29 when the UK will hopefully be able to bask in the warm weather.

The final months of the year are baron for bank holidays until Christmas when the working population get a further three days away from work. Due to Christmas Day 2022 falling on a weekend, a substitute bank holiday falls on December 27 in addition to the regular Boxing Day holiday.