AN extended weekend is never an issue for me. Having a Monday off - the world’s most hated day - feels even nicer than finishing work for the week on a Friday.

But I fail to see the point of Bank Holidays.

Unless it’s Easter or Christmas, why do we have them?

According to the forever faithful internet there isn’t a real reason. Prior to 1834, the Bank of England observed about 33 saints’ days and religious festivals as holidays, but in 1834 this was reduced to four - May Day, the first Monday in May, All Saints Day, in November, Good Friday, the day Jesus was crucified, and Christmas Day, for obvious reasons.

Then in 1871 the Bank Holidays Act was introduced, which added Easter Monday, Whit Monday, the first Monday in August which is now the summer holiday at then end of August, and Boxing Day as Bank Holidays, but took Good Friday and Christmas Day off the Bank Holiday list as they were recognised as common law holidays as they had been holidays since before records began.

New Year’s Day did not become a Bank Holiday in England until January 1, 1974.

Under the Act, “no person was compelled to make any payment or to do any act upon a bank holiday which he would not be compelled to do or make on Christmas Day or Good Friday, and the making of a payment or the doing of an act on the following day was equivalent to doing it on the holiday.”

But again, why these days? Why does everyone have to take them together, at the same time. I could understand if they related to an event or festival, like Christmas which technically isn’t a Bank Holiday anyway, but they don’t. They’re just days when people get to have a day off work, or are paid extra to work it, or are forced to work it because the people who have the day off want to drink or shop or be ill.

Can’t we start recognising national days as Bank Holidays - for example, St George’s Day (April 23), Second Half of the Year Day (July 1), Donald Duck Day (June 9), World Bartender Day (February 24) – which would be pretty useless as most bar staff have to work Bank Holidays - but you get my drift.

At least these days have some meaning. Some reason to celebrate, to take part in something, a reason to do something other than work. Sitting around doing nothing should not be a reason a nation needs to have a day off. If someone wants to do that, then book a day off.

I think we should all just get an extra five days holiday allowance, because we’ll keep Good Friday, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day as Bank Holidays please, to use when we need a day to sit around in our pyjamas playing video games or catch up on bill paying and make all the phone calls you just can’t make as a Monday-Friday worker.