When is Easter 2023? - what date does Lent start? - when is Pancake Tuesday?

Easter is an important date for followers of all Christian faiths.

Good Friday will happen on Friday, April 7, which is also a Bank Holiday throughout the UK.

Easter Monday falls on April 10, which will mark a four-day weekend for the UK.

When does Lent start in 2023?

Lent starts on Wednesday, February 22nd with what is known as Ash Wednesday.

Lent is a Christian annual period that starts on Ash Wednesday lasting for 40 days (not Including Sundays) representing the 40 days Jesus spent fasting in the wilderness.

This 40 day period for Christians is a time to reflect, fast, and give penance in preparation for the resurrection of Christ Easter Sunday.

Lent for Christians starts on Ash Wednesday and ends on either the evening of Maundy Thursday or on sundown of Holy Saturday (day before Easter Sunday).

And when is Pancake Tuesday?

Colloquially known as Pancake Day, the celebration falls exactly 47 days before Easter Sunday.

So this years Shrove Tuesday is on February 21.

Find out more about Pancake Day here

How was the date for Easter decided?

In 2023 Easter Sunday falls on 9 April – and the simple standard definition of Easter is that it is the first Sunday after the full Moon that occurs on or after the spring equinox.

If the full Moon falls on a Sunday then Easter is the next Sunday.