I've been considering a PhD and have been checking almost daily as the adverts are posted on jobs.ac/findaphd.com and still struggling to find something im interested in applying for...I need to be London/SE area so that limits my choice somewhat...should I be panicking that I havent yet gone throught the application process yet? how late do PhD applications run?

i think, first of all you need to be passionate about your topic, i dont understand the point looking through the ads, if you dont know what you would like to research. good luck.

I know the area of research in which i want to study that isnt the problem i still have to check each day for the new projects posted...im just concerned that Its now the middle of March. My question was how late do people continue to apply?

Have you tried Nature job sections? I would not worry PhD posts do pop up through out the year but the majority tend to be around about now to start in Oct.Could you not speak to your old uni lecturers and ask for their advise on the application process? What areas are you interested in study? What do you want to do with your PhD? Thinking about such questions may help you pick an area of study. Oh and a bit of advise if you get to interview dont mention that you had to stay in the area as they may think that you are only interested in the project cos its nearby.
Good Luck!!

Only applying for existing projects could severely limit your options, if you know what you are interested in then you should just get on with writing research proposals and applying.

You can apply for a PhD at any time, but some of the deadlines for funding will have already passed (e.g. Durham) and others will be approaching.
Have a look at the institutions you are interested in, and see what deadlines they have for studentship applications.

i applied for an existing project and had my interview in april. There were still places being advertised after I'd been interviewed and accepted my place.

If you don't see anything that you really want to do, you'd be better off not applying for any old project and looking for places the following year. A year out might be what you really need, and might give you the chance to work on your own proposal so your not constrained by other people's ideas. I say thins cos it took me four years to find the PhD project I'm on now, and I can honestly say the time inbetween has helped me to get on in academia.

My post was advertised at the end of April for September entry-and managed to get on!

Maybe different depending on uni and whether the PhD is pre-defined one (as mine was) or a PhD developed soley from the student. I think at unis such as UCL, the deadline for applications was January for September entry.

If you know the area of study and the possible institutions try contacting potential supervisors directly to see if there is anything in the poplein and laso to see if any of them would be interested in discussing an indiviual application for funding (bit late for that this year though - that would need to be next year as the deadlines are generally March - April).

When you are geographically constrained (I was too) you have to be more proactive.

pipeline, even