The Best Places in the UK to View the Solar Eclipse

Tonight, 12 August, a total solar eclipse crosses Greenland, Iceland and northern Spain. Britain isn't in the path of totality, and never gets the full blackout drama this time round. What we get instead is a partial eclipse, low in the west, right around sunset. That sounds like a consolation prize. It isn't. A sun sliced into a crescent and sinking into the sea is its own kind of spectacle, and the further west and south you are, the more dramatic it looks. Bring eclipse glasses (sunglasses will not do), a clear western horizon, and low expectations of the British weather. Timings shift by several minutes across the country, and the sun sets earlier the further east you are - check local start times and sunset for your exact spot before you head out.