Hmm…been rather curious since I first about this from friends who came to UK. Now only i sit down & do proper search…haha…
What is British Summer Time? British Daylight Saving?
In the UK, during summer (e.g. on 30 March this year), British clocks is moved forward one hour from 1.00am GMT straight to 3.00am, skipping 2.00am (time difference with M’sia becomes 7 hours) Having the BST marks the start of the summer.At the end of summer, time is switched backward one hour.
So, why is it called Summer Daylight Saving?
Under standard Greewich Meridian Time (GMT), during summer, sun will rise very very early in the morning, say at 3.00am, while most people are still asleep. People wake up 6.00am onwards, wasting 3 hours of sunlight. By fast-forwarding 1 hour, sun will now “rise” at 4.00am and you will utilise the sun light more. Hence, Summer Daylight Savings. This system is not just used in the UK but also in many countries north and south of the equator. Look here.
The main reasons now for adopting BST are the saving in power given by the longer hours of daylight in the evenings & the increased useful daylight leisure time available to those who work.
Hmm…Why not 2 hours instead of one?
Apparently the UK government had done some trials during 2nd World War (1939-1945) when they adopted a Double British Summer Time and they found out that single BST is still better.
Who was the smart guy who invented this?
William Willet from England, in 1907. He was really ‘tak syok’ (‘fuming’) with the ‘waste’ of useful daylight when he went horseriding in local woods Chislehurst and Petts Wood while everyone was still asleep in summer morning. UK government initially rejected his proposal but later took a try to save fuel and money when their rival Germany (first world war 1914-1918), adopted the strategy.
Now the Petts Wood has become a tourist attraction for walking tours. More on this see here and here.
Oic…so when is BST ending this year?
This Sunday, 26 October 2008, at 2.00am, BST will officially end and you will need to turn it back to 1.00am, therefore experiencing two 1.00am. Time difference between UK and M’sia will then become 8 hours. Pretty simple thing to do isnt it? But imagine last time when the clocks couldnt be turned backwards…haha..
Sooo, be ready to go back in time this Sunday morning! 
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