St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday 2020

Scotland's patron saint
St Andrew's Day falls on 30 November and honours the apostle Andrew, brother of Peter, who by tradition was martyred on a diagonal cross at Patras in Greece. That cross is the origin of the white saltire on Scotland's flag.

The legend of the saltire
The story tells of a battle at Athelstaneford in East Lothian, where a white cross of cloud appeared against a blue sky before a Pictish and Scottish army defeated the Northumbrians. The saltire is among the oldest national flags still in use.

A bank holiday only since 2007
The St Andrew's Day Bank Holiday (Scotland) Act 2007 added 30 November to the Scottish list, and it was first kept that same year. It was intended to replace an existing local holiday rather than add one, so a great many Scots still work the day. No bank holiday anywhere in the UK obliges an employer to close, but this is the one where that shows most plainly.

What happens on the day
Ceilidhs, Scottish food and traditional music mark the day, and it opens the run of Scottish winter celebrations that carries on through Hogmanay and finishes with Burns Night on 25 January. Public buildings fly the saltire.

Substitute days
Being tied to 30 November, the holiday is moved to the following Monday when the date falls at the weekend.

UK bank holidays 2020