Stay on top of the UK’s key holidays and marketing moments with our SMS tips.

According to our 2022 survey of 700 UK consumers, 90% are interested in receiving text messages from brands. Tap into this demand this year with timely SMS touchpoints. 

Across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, there are endless opportunities throughout 2023 to grow your list and drive seasonal revenue with SMS. Here are the UK’s top marketing holidays and actionable monthly tips to inspire your SMS strategies and drive engagement year round.

Once you’re ready to dig in and start scheduling your campaigns, use our SMS Planning Calendar Template. It’s got everything you need to track marketing moments, which audiences you’re engaging, and campaign status.

In a rush? Bookmark this post to reference throughout the year, and download the full 2023 UK calendar.  You can also download calendars for the US, Australia, and Canada.

January 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Kick off 2023 with memorable SMS experiences. Promote your most relaxing products to help subscribers recharge from the holidays and start the year refreshed. Help ease subscribers’ shopping experience with a direct link to the featured product collection.

• 1 January: New Year’s Day
• 2 January: 2nd of January Holiday
• 2 January: Handsel Monday
• 9 January: Plough Monday
• 11 January: International Thank You Day
• 22 January: Lunar New Year
• 25 January: Burns Night
• 25 January: St. Dwynwen's Day

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February 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Leading up to Valentine’s Day, ask your subscribers who they’re looking to get a gift for, or how they’re planning to celebrate. Then, with Attentive’s Two-Way Journeys^TM, you can instantly reply with a gift recommendation based on their preferences. 

• 2 February: Time To Talk Day
• 7 February: Safer Internet Day
• 11 February: International Day of Women and Girls in Science
• 13 February: World Radio Day
• 14 February: Valentine’s Day
• 22 February: World Thinking Day

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March 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Spring into March with memorable SMS marketing strategies. Whether your subscribers are looking for a Mother’s Day gift or St. Patrick’s Day party gear, Two-Way Journeys helps you recommend the perfect product. Plus, you can save subscriber responses to their profiles as custom attributes, so you can customize their brand experience throughout the customer lifecycle.

• Women’s History Month
• 1 March: First Day of Spring
• 8 March: International Women’s Day
• 13 March: Commonwealth Day
• 17 March: St. Patrick’s Day
• 17 March: Red Nose Day
• 19 March: Mother’s Day / Mothering Sunday
• 20 March: Great British Spring Clean Day
• 23 March: World Maths Day

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April 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Take advantage of April’s key marketing dates to deliver unique value to subscribers and boost seasonal revenue. Leading up to Easter, offer your SMS audience the convenience of free gift baskets to stand out from other spring holiday sales and encourage subscribers to convert.

• National Pet Month
• 1 April: April Fool’s Day
• 2 April: International Children's Book Day
• 7 April: Good Friday (Bank Holiday)
• 9 April: Easter
• 10 April: Easter Monday (Bank Holiday)
• 15 April: World Art Day
• 21 April: International Creativity and Innovation Day
• 22 April: Earth Day
• 23 April: Shakespeare Day

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May 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: The many bank holidays in May make it the perfect opportunity to convert seasonal shoppers into SMS subscribers. While customers are shopping online over the long weekends, grab their attention by customizing your sign-up units with seasonal images and unique incentives—like a bank holiday giveaway.

• 1 May: May Bank Holiday
• 1 May: May Day
• 6 May: Coronation of King Charles III
• 8 May: King’s Coronation Bank Holiday
• 12 May: International Nurses Day
• 14 May: National Children’s Day
• 18 May: International Museum Day
• 22 May: Start of British Sandwich Week
• 29 May: Spring Bank Holiday

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June 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: June kick starts the summer sales season. Offer subscribers 15% off to stock up on summer essentials, like apparel, picnic accessories, and refreshing drinks. Make sure your cart and browse abandonment journeys are active to remind high-intent subscribers to claim their summer goodies.

• Pride Month
• 1 June: First Day of Summer
• 3 June: World Bicycle Day
• 7 June: Global Running Day
• 8 June: World Ocean Day
• 10 June: King’s Birthday
• 15 June: National Beer Day
• 18 June: Father’s Day
• 21 June: International Yoga Day

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July 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: From World Chocolate Day to International Self-Care Day, use July’s unique marketing holidays to get subscribers engaged. For World Emoji Day, diversify your campaign messages by telling your brand’s story using only emojis—following up with a quick “translation” to grow brand awareness.

• 1 July: International Joke Day
• 3 July: Wimbledon Start
• 7 July: World Chocolate Day
• 12 July: Orangemen's Day
• 17 July: World Emoji Day
• 24 July: International Self-Care Day
• 30 July: International Day of Friendship

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August 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Stretch the fun of summer a little longer with Playday promotions for children’s apparel and outdoor play equipment. Then, it’s time to get into back-to-school mode. Kickstart your seasonal strategies by offering text message subscribers early access to your back-to-school deals.

• 1 August: Yorkshire Day
• 2 August: Playday
• 8 August: International Cat Day
• 12 August: Premier League Season Start
• 13 August: International Lefthanders Day
• 15 August: National Relaxation Day
• 28 August: Summer Bank Holiday

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September 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: In September, International Day of Charity is a great opportunity to connect with subscribers on your brand mission and values. Let them know you’ll donate a percentage of every purchase to a charity that aligns with your values. Try including a blog post to educate subscribers on the cause and organization’s impact.

• 1 September: First Day of Autumn
• 2 September: World Beard Day
• 5 September: International Day of Charity
• 19 September: Talk Like a Pirate Day
• 21 September: International Day of Peace
• 27 September: World Tourism Day
• 29 September: World Heart Day

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October 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: Keep subscribers engaged before the holiday season with these fun marketing touchpoints. Treat subscribers to a buy-one-get-one “perk” this International Coffee Day. And for World Teachers’ Day, share a curated gift guide to help consumers say "thank you" to the teachers in their life.

• Black History Month
• 1 October: International Coffee Day
• 1 October: Grandparents’ Day
• 5 October: World Teachers’ Day
• 6 October: National Badger Day
• 10 October: World Mental Health Day
• 16 October: World Food Day
• 31 October: Halloween

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November 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: The peak shopping season is here! Stay on top of Cyber Week by scheduling your campaigns in advance. Build excitement ahead of your Black Friday/Cyber Monday sale by giving subscribers early access to your Christmas deals. Create a sense of exclusivity with a secret code that subscribers can redeem at checkout.

• 1 November: World Vegan Day
• 5 November: Guy Fawkes Day
• 11 November: Singles’ Day
• 12 November: Remembrance Day
• 13 November: Kindness Day
• 20 November: Start of Road Safety Week
• 21 November: World Television Day
• 24 November: Black Friday
• 27 November: Cyber Monday
• 28 November: Giving Tuesday
• 30 November: St. Andrew’s Day 

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December 2023 Holidays

SMS tip of the month: This trading season is a great opportunity to grow your SMS channel. Customize your SMS sign-up units with exclusive holiday deals to drive additional opt-ins. Then, come Boxing Day, you’ll be ready to nurture your new subscribers—and longtime loyalists—with personalized SMS experiences.

• 1 December: First Day of Winter
• 3 December: International Day of Persons With Disabilities
• 5 December: International Volunteers Day
• 7 December: Free Delivery Day
• 8 December: Christmas Jumper Day
• 10 December: World Football Day
• 11 December: Green Monday
• 15 December: Mad Friday
• 23 December: Super Saturday
• 26 December: Boxing Day
• 31 December: New Year’s Eve

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Want more SMS inspiration for the UK’s key dates and holidays? Browse hundreds of text messaging campaigns sent by our customers in our SMS gallery, Texts We Love.

Download the full UK 2023 calendar.

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