Early May bank holiday

Culture of origin: National · National holiday

Holiday sources: United Kingdom (England and Wales)

Also known as May Day, it is one of the seven bank holidays common to every part of the UK. Bank holidays began with the Bank Holidays Act 1871, and the first Monday in May became a holiday across the whole UK only in 1978. The date can move for national occasions: in 1995 and 2020 it was shifted to 8 May for the 50th and 75th anniversaries of VE Day.