Why TODAY is the most depressing day of the year

Combination of post-Christmas finances, bad weather and long wait for summer combine for 'Blue Monday'

Today is the most depressing of the year with people's moods affected by their post-Christmas finances, the bad weather and the long wait for summer.

Researchers have dubbed January 21 as Blue Monday after finding that people are at their loneliest, debt levels are at their highest and the weather is at its worst, at this time of year.  

26% of British people claim that this month is when they feel the most isolated. On top of this, 87% of the population also feel the weather has a direct influence on their mood, 

But it might not just be the gloomy skies bringing the country down, as the data also suggests two-thirds (61%) of people feel depressed on their way to work.

Manchester and Leeds topped its list of the places which suffer worst from the January blues.

While there is no hard science behind the date, the third Monday in January earned the title of the gloomiest day of the year.

On Monday, people are less likely to smile before 11:16 am, they complain for 34 minutes on average, an additional 12 minutes to any other day, and almost half of the female participants call it their ugly day.

Monday is also the most common day to have a heart attack or stroke. 

A tourism company in Britain brought the idea into fruition as part of a media campaign encouraging people to travel out of the UK winter and into warmer climates.

In other parts of the world, though, the third Monday of January falls in the peak of summer, generally ruling out icy-cold weather as a factor in people's moods.