Regarding the LCCs, they in turn seem to be getting beaten back by the mainstream carriers. With our most recent trip, to Sicily, booked about 3-4 weeks before departure, Easyjet was far and away the most expensive, over £600 return from London, BA were significantly less, but Alitalia were less than half the Easy price, and from Heathrow, connecting through either Rome or Milan. But Alitalia's key selling point, just like a previous trip on BA to Nice, was not so much the pricing as a spread not only of all dates but of departure times, every few hours through the day, from which we could pick and choose the best for us. The LCCs can offer just one or two departures a day, often with an 0600 departure or a near-midnight return (which both prevent any use of public transport to access the airport). TCX ? One flight a week, and if you don't want 7 or 14 days, tough.
That is the LCC model though. The earlier the booking, the cheaper the fare generally is. Book late, like in your case, and you will pay a more expensive fare. The legacies are the exact opposite. I personally think the legacies are still finding things very tough whilst the LCC's are still doing remarkably well in a very tough economic climate. Plus when it comes to many of the leisure destinations the legacies tend not to serve as they are often marginal.