Cheer up for year's happiest day

Good weather and holiday prospects put us on a high on 24 June

Ignore the rain, hail and thunder - Friday, 24 June is the happiest day of the year, according to an academic.

Dr Cliff Arnall, of the University of Cardiff, said the combination of good weather and the prospect of time off means Britain will be on a high.

The seasonal disorders specialist has devised a formula which measures good mood using increased outdoor activity, high energy levels and more sunlight.

He used a similar method to work out 24 January was the most depressing day.

The equation Dr Arnall devised to find the happiest day, in work commissioned by ice cream maker Walls, was O + (N x S) + Cpm/T + He.

Within that, O stands for being outdoors and outdoor activity, N for nature, S for social interaction, Cpm for childhood summers and positive memories, T for temperature and He for holidays and looking forward to time off.

Dr Arnall said: "Happiness is associated with many things in life and can be triggered by a variety of events.

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"Whether it's a sunny day, a childhood memory, or something as effortless as eating a delicious ice cream, I wanted my formula to prove the key to happiness can really be that simple."

Other factors which helped 24 June towards becoming the happiest day were the Wimbledon championships adding a sense of national pride, and the fact that it has fallen on the Friday this year.

But with storms hitting most parts of Britain and both Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski out of the All England Championships, will Dr Arnall's equation still compute?

"The issue about the weather specific to this formula is the temperature, which is still reasonably high," he said.

"This will pass - you do get summer storms and skin is waterproof.

"Andrew Murray has come completely out of nowhere at Wimbledon and the way that he plays compared to Tim Henman, that coolness - he seems very professional and collected.

"I think the endless hopes, the optimism, that we have still remain."