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A curious quirk in the British weather records is a string of awful summers in 12 ending years. This'll be a long one so you've been warned! The summer of 1812 we have comparitively little data, but records show it was an exceptionally cold summer even for the time with a C.E.T. of 13.8C. It came off of an extremely cold spring and was particularly wet in May and June. 100 years later and there came a summer where "poor" may be an insulting understatement even to the iciest hearted coldie. The "summer" of 1912 is one of the worst summers ever recorded in the UK with an average of 409.7mm of rain in the EWP data series, the WETTEST summer ever recorded. It was also cold with a C.E.T. of 14.3C, with one particular month doing the heavy lifitng, but we'll get there... June 1912 was an exceptionally wet month (duh) and it was rather cool too with a C.E.T. of 13.9. What makes the month notable is the remarkable abundance of thunder. The 15th was the only day of the month where thunder wasn't recorded. The month began cold with snowfall on the Welsh mountains on the 4th. There was plenty of thunderstorms and widespread falls of 25-50mm. The 7th was a very wet day with widespread falls of 50-75mm of rain across the south-east. The 9th was the most destructive day of the month with severe thunderstorms reported in all districts. Over in Ireland the town of Collooney saw 3 inches of hail lay on the ground and parts of the town were swept away. The 15th being the only thunder-free day didn't mean it was free of rain though, further widespread falls of 40mm fell on this day. The 17th was perhaps the wettest day of the month with widespread falls of 25-100mm in the north and parts of Wales with 134.6mm at Copper Mill. The month wasn't without heat as this preceeded a hot spell that lasted about three days with temperatures peaking at 29C in Isleworth (Hounslow) on the 22nd. Only the far north was dry. A large swathe of western England saw anomalies of over 300-375% of the normal rainfall. It was dull everywhere with sunshine anomalies under half in the west and the north, though remarkably it was sunny in the south-east with sunshine anomalies around 110-120%; Greenwich had 123%. How this happened, God knows. July 1912 was a month of two-halves in many ways. The volatile weather took a break in the first half and there was even some very hot weather. It's the least poor month of the summer with a C.E.T. of 16.1C and an EWP of 94.4mm, so only average temperatures and fairly wet still! The first half generally saw high pressure around and dry weather. Whilst June saw rain every day in many places, there was a spell of total dry weather in many areas seeing up to 11 consecutive days without rain (wow). Despite this, it was generally very overcast a lot of the time. The month briefly turned very hot from the 12th to the 17th with the temperature peaking at 33C at multiple London stations on the 12th. There were some tropical nights too with parts of the south having minima as high as 21C on the 16th. The extremely wet and very thundery weather that characterised much of June generally returned for most from the 19th onward. Despite being generally dry many areas saw falls of 25mm on rain on most days. The north-west was particularly wet with between 150-300mm of rain falling between the 23th and 27th alone. Away from eastern and south-eastern coasts where it was dry it was generally very wet despite a dry first-half. Parts of Kent and Yorkshire had under half but much of western England had totals over 200%. It was dull everywhere except the far north, even in places where it was dry; York had 46% rainfall yet 44% sunshine. Forget every sense of what a poor summer month is as you're about to witness the very worst naturally possible without a volcanic winter. August 1912 has a C.E.T. of 12.9 (no typo!) and an EWP of 192.9mm. It is the coldest, wettest and dullest August ever recorded and the most extreme of any month ever being the first (and I think only?) month to ever take three records. You'll be shocked by the stats! The early part of the month saw the only semblance of warmth all month with 23C at Greenwich on the 4th. Only very scattered places in the south even reached 21C all month with many parts in the north and west only reaching 18C; Aberdeen only saw 16C. Widespread severe thunderstorms from the 7th to the 10th. The exceptional rainfall totals of this month are mind boggling. The usually dry Norfolk saw over 250mm in places. Many locations ranging from the south-west to parts of Wales recorded over 300mm with the most extreme examples being around Snowdonia with 635mm. Only the extreme north was dry with around half the normal in lucky Fort William. Sunshine was remarkably low with parts of the south-east having as low as 30%. Glasgow and Eskdalemuir had 10%!!!. By the far the most remarkable event occured late in the month. Trevor Harley writes: On the 26th a deepening depression brough severe weather to East Anglia, resulting in the Great Norfolk Flood. There were 206 mm of rainfall at Brundall, and 186 mm of rain at Norwich, with the rain continuing for 30 hours from the 26th into the 27th. The pressure at Great Yarmouth was 978 mbars. 100 mm of rain was widespread over Norfolk and Suffolk, with a westerly gale. The worst flooding caused by rain in East Anglia on record. Norwich was cut off for two days, with over 40 bridges destroyed, with flooding 15' deep in places. spreading out for 40 miles. Three people drowned, an one particular variety of Norwich canary was lost. Much of the Fens stayed under water through the following winter. 100 years later and 1912's little sibling let it be known that not even climate change would stop the legacy from continuing! The summer of 2012 may not have been as cool (15.27C) but it was every bit as wet with an EWP of 375mm, the 4th wettest summer on record. If not for a less exceptional August it could have easily taken 1912's place as wettest. I don't have to remind most of you how bad the summer of 2012 was as about 99.9% of the people reading this will have experienced it, so I'll be a little less full on with the stats. June 2012 kicked things off with a bang with an EWP of 160.1mm, the WETTEST June ever recorded. It was cool too with a C.E.T. of 13.5C, actually cooler than June 1912. It's also the dullest June on record for the UK as a whole. The month quickly turned unsettled after a hot end to May. The 3rd was the first true day of the summer we'd all come to know with torrential rain and temperatures struggling to exceed 11C north of London; Emley Moor (East Yorkshire) had a high of just 6.3C. Temperatures fell as low as 2C across East Anglia on the 5th. This was followed by an unusually wet and windy spell from the 7th to the 9th; In mid-Wales a major rescue effort was needed after severe flooding caused by prolonged heavy rain. Villages in Ceredigion were cut off with houses and caravan parks being flooded. Gusts of 62 mph. were recorded at Plymouth (Devon) on 7th and of 82 mph. at the Needles (Isle of Wight) in the early hours of 8th. Exceptionally cool and with localised flooding from the 11th to the 15th. After a chilly start on 13th when Santon Downham (Suffolk) dipped to 0.4C many places on the east coast failed to exceed 13C. Briefly dry and fine before further unsettled weather. Still, Northolt managed a tame 23.3C on the 20th with much of the SE around 21C. Foul conditions on the 21st; Heavy rain and high winds momentarily put out the Olympic flame and forced Blackpool's evening celebration indoors as the relay reached its halfway point. A grand outdoor finale had been planned in the seaside town but torrential and wind reaching up to 50mph curtailed the day's events. A trip to the top of Blackpool Tower was cancelled and, with the tower in sight, the flame went out as the squall worsened in the early evening. The month then briefly turned warmer but not without the summer's most infamous and iconic weather event, the supercell storms on the 28th. They've been well documented elsewhere on this site so go search! Leicestershire Tornadic Supercell Storms of 28th June 2012 | hinckleyweather's Blog HINCKLEYWEATHERBLOG.WORDPRESS.COM Every so often a weather event occurs that is so extreme and so sudden, that it can’t possibly be forecast or expected to happen in any particular location. The 28th of June 2012 was such an occasion when Hinckley... Still, the only warm weather of the month however brief was reached with 28.6C at Swanscombe (Kent) as the south-east missed the storms entirely. July 2012 was a cool and wet month, both cooler and wetter than July 1912 with a C.E.T. of 15.6 and an EWP of 120.4mm. The month was saved by a warm and sunny final week. Low pressure controlled the weather throughout the early period of the month with bands of rain giving way to sunny spells and heavy, thundery showers which were slow-moving at times. Some exceptional rainfall totals were recorded during this period. A month's worth of rain fell across Devon county over 24 hours on the 8th, with Yealmpton, Modbury and Ottery St Mary being among the worst areas hit. The council said initial estimates had revealed the clear-up costs would be more than £1m and the repair bill to Devon's highway network more than £3m. According to the Environment Agency, up to 90mm of rain fell in parts of south Devon and up to 120mm in parts of east Devon. It remained very cool, showery and with some further severe thunderstorms during the middle of the month. The first true fine spell of the summer for most from the 21st to the 26th with temperatures widely in the mid twenties, peaking at 30.7C at St. James's Park in London on the 25th. This broke by month's end with some severe thunderstorms on the 29th (One of the meanest looking clouds I've ever seen!). August 2012 was the warmest month of the summer and of any of the summer months discussed, with a C.E.T. of 16.7C and it has an EWP of 94.2mm; wet but not exceptionally so - and actually dry in the south-east. It was dull with around 86% of the average sunshine. An unsettled start with further thunderstorms. Slow-moving thundery downpours on the 5th caused localised flooding of properties and travel disruption invarious parts of England, Wales and Scotland. Worst hit were Pembrokeshire, Cheshire, Devon, Tyneside andthe Scottish Borders. Heavy showers led to further flooding in Tyneside on the 6th. Hotter around the middle section of the month with high pressure building bringing fine and dry weather for a time. Unsettled mid-month with thunderstorms but then turning hot with 32.4C on the 18th at Cavendish (Suffolk) the hottest temperature of the year (and actually lower than the max in 1912). Flooding in Northampton on the 15th with the Grovesner Shopping Centre being closed for flood damages. Minimum temperatures into the 18th remained above 19-20C in parts of East Anglia and SE England. The heat cleared but the summer wasn't without further unsettled weather and thunderstorms. Severe thunderstorms broke out on the 25th (Rainfall so heavy it almost flooded the shops at Lakeside I was in with my parents at the time!). Parts of Cumbria were hit by flash flooding after a night of heavy rain on the 30th. 40mm of rain fell in less than three hours, affecting areas including Sandwith, Egremont, St. Bees, Beckermet, Gosforth, Ravenglass and Seascale. A train carrying workers to the Sellafield nuclear plant derailed when it struck a landslide south of St Bees, near Nethertown, at about 0620 GMT. The passengers were rescued and put on a replacement train, but it was forced to stop because of another landslide. Torrential downpours in the Isle of Man led to the closure of a number of the island's roads. An unusually cold end to August with several places reporting their lowest-ever August temperature, including Aviemore -1.8C, Benson 2.1C and Bradford 2.8C. For those reading whom are immortal, perhaps book your holidays abroad in the summer of 2112.

When the topic of a bad summer comes up, one year that often comes to mind is 2007. However, 100 years before occured the 6th coldest summer ever recorded since 1659 & the coldest of the 20th century. There hasn't been a colder once since, only 1922 is on a similar level. Let's take a look at how this summer was so cold. After an exceptionally sunny March and warm start to April, the weather became cooler and May proved to be mostly cold and dull with the sole exception of a hot spell mid-month, giving the hottest temperatures of the year in places. That takes us into... Jun. 1907 - Very cold, wet and dull with an unusual excess of lightning & thunder. Thunder was reported somewhere on 26 out of 30 days. Daytime temperature were shockingly depressed, many areas could not exceed 70F all month. This was the coldest June since 1860 with a C.E.T. of 12.4. Unusually foggy. The month was disturbed from the very start with low pressure atop the country and a fair amount of northern blocking. Thunderstorms struck the SE on the 1st. Much of England & Wales were hit by thunderstorms on the 9th/10th, then N England and Ireland had its turn on the 12th. This period is generally cold and dismal, though a weak attempt at a warmer pattern occurs on the 8th/9th with the low spinning up humid S/SW winds. Before that, there were reports of sleet in Surrey on the 3rd. The 17th was the only true "fine" day of the month under this weak ridge. It was soon followed by very cool westerly winds. The month ended without a single fine and dry day. Jul. 1907 - Exceptionally cool, though not as wet as June. A cold, damp, foggy July with no real warmth, let alone heat. Remarkable thunderstorms and hailstorms which I will go into detail below. It was the coldest July since the frigid July of 1888 with a CET of 14.1. The west was the best place to be, with sunshine closer to average and below average rainfall, however the east was wetter and duller than average. A cold, dreary start to July with low pressure stuck over the country, more akin to October. An exceptional hailstorm occured at Cirencester on the 4th, however I haven't got any more information on size or duration. The mid-section of the month was an approvement with high pressure building, giving a dry and windless period. The charts look warm, but at the surface things were different. Because high pressure centred over Scotland, much of E. England suffered greatly with cloud and depressed temperatures during this time, even fog was reported on many days. In the far west it was much better & the reports suggest this was may have been a decent spell of hot weather across Ireland. Reminds me of late Aug. 2021... Pressure broke on the 21st and it led to the most noteworthy weather event of the summer. Trevor Harley writes, " a ferocious hailstorm in South Wales stripped leaves off trees: 80 mm of rain fell at Pandy (Monmouthshire). There was flooding in Watford as 68 mm of rain fell in under two hours." 66mm of rain fell at Bath in 3 hours on the 21st and 41mm in half an hour at Rochford. The month ended changeable and unsettled and eventually cold again with N winds. Aug. 1907 - The least remarkable of all three months. A very cool August (adding to the plethora of them during the late 19th/early 20th century) with abundant westerly winds. The CET stands at 14.3. Very wet with rain on most days in the north but a little drier in the south. Another month with a lack of any heat, though warmer sectors gave the occasional warm and humid afternoons. A generally cool and unsettled opener to August. I can't imagine how grating this could have been, especially being used to warm summers in this day and age. The occaisonal warmer afternoon occured, but never due to a sustained area of high pressure . The most notable feature of the month was the very cold air minimum of 1C at Barnet on the night of the 27th/28th. However, in true British fashion the weather was about to turn as we went into September... Sep. 1907 - After such a cold and bland summer, September proved to be a stellar month. Temperatures were above average with warm days and cool nights. One exception was coastal areas which suffered greatly with fog. Some stations reported 26 days with dog. Another notable stat is how dry it was. After the 7th many areas recorded two weeks without rain. Some would have to wait until October for their next rain. Exceptionally dry with an average of 22.7mm, the 8th driest ever recorded. The month started cool and unsettled but a change was coming. Pressure rose on the 7th and began a long, fine beautiful spell of weather. Aside from a cooler interlude from the 12th to 14th, the month was completely high pressure dominated. These are beautiful charts and would have been welcomed a couple of months earlier! A push of southerly winds on the 25th gave much of northern and eastern England the hottest day of the year; stations across Norfolk reached 25C. The month ended warm and fine but with some thunder in the south. The stats show no one month was a record breaker, but put together it creates the sixth coldest summer on record. Sixth coldest summer on record. June and July both 17th coldest and August 38th coldest. In contrast, September is the 8th driest on record with an average of 22.6mm.(!) After such a bad summer we would go through three more very poor ones until 1911 came along and was extremely hot and dry. What a shock that must have come as!

125 years ago, Britain was suffering through one of the most unpleasant looking autumns I can find in the record books. An exceptionally wet September, the fifth coldest October on record & a very cold November. To set the scene, the first half of 1896 had been remarkably dry. The previous winter had been bone dry & apart from a wet March, the spring proved to be even drier. Then summer only provided average rainfall. To top it off, it had also been a mild winter & spring and June was exceptionally warm. We hadn't had a notably wetter than average month since Jul. 1895; drought! First signs of change came in August, which while not wet, was cold with a C.E.T of 14.3. The first signs of change came on the 25th/26th with a divebombing low pressure system introducing rain and cold northerly winds. This would set the scene for the next couple of months. Let's start with... September, 1896 Extremely wet with frequent gales and rather cool temperatures. It was the wettest of any month since Oct. 1891. Sunshine was in very short supply too, with large swathes recording 60-70% of their average. Even the sunniest (to average) places, such as Stornoway, recieved 85% of their average. The C.E.T stands at 13.1. This, to me, looks like a classic case of mild nights but very cool days, backed up by how dull it was. Early September generally featured weak pressure over and to the south of the country with rather cool weather, showers and thunderstorms. A more sustained push from the Atlantic came on the 9th. This was the warmest part of the month, though few places exceeded 21degC. It became cooler on the 13th when the SW flow got cut off. The second half of the month became very cold with weather more akin to November with deep areas of low pressure, unusually so for September, crossing the UK in succesion. The chart for the 25th looks exceptionally wet. A real soaker! The final day of the month saw pressure rise, perhaps giving false hope for a fine October, but it was not to be... October, 1896 Spectacularly cold, with a C.E.T. of 6.9; the fifth coldest October. A very changeable month with many gales and an unusual excess of lightning and thunder. Sunshine was once again in short supply, the strange exception being the southwest and southern coasts. Brighton recorded 141% of their average sunshine. Despite this, the first week of the month was actually quite mild, showing how exceptionally cold the second-half was. Winds generally came from the Atlantic and were strong to gale force. Cold air flood south during the 9th/10th, introducing much colder -5 upper air temperatures across all of Scotland and into N England. The 10th and 11th saw widespread falls of snow, particularly in the north. Crazy by modern standards! It then goes into a very blocked pattern mid-month. I imagine this must have been very dull, chilly, raw and wet. Northerly winds persisted for the entire rest of the month, with many falls of snow, particularly in the north, a regular occurence. On the night of the 24th/25th the temperature dipped tp 17degF/-8degC. Severe penetrating frosts for the time of year were common everywhere Winds veered NE for months end. That takes us into the final month... November, 1896 Another very cold month, though a flick through the archives doesn't look spectacular, one has to remember that it was a lot easier to get cold weather under high pressure. The C.E.T. stands at 4.3. Speaking of high pressure, the dry theme of 1896 came back! A very dry month with one fourth of the average rainfall across the south and west, though some big thunderstorms occured on the 1st and the 19th. Sunshine was in excess, being a very sunny November. An unstable and quite cold flow from the northeast to start the month, continuing the sharp frosts from late October, then briefly dry and fine under high pressure before a cold NE flow bringing snow on the 7th/8th. The 9th to the 14th was somewhat milder with winds reverting to a west direction, but not overly unsettled as pressure remained high. The 14/15th was the only truly unsettled period of the month, though not a normal Atlantic driven set up, the flow is NW/SE. Another quite mild period came, but high pressure came back to rule the roost by the 21st. This was quite mild in the north with temperatures reaching the mid-teens celsius. It turned much colder at months end with easterly winds. This is when the coldest temperatures of the month were recorded, the coldest being 18F at Braemar (not as cold as Octobers minimum!). Quite random, but that chart for the 30th of November reminds me a lot of New Year's Day 2002. Overall... Sept. 1896 is currently the 6th wettest September on record, while Nov. 1896 is the 10th driest on record! Oct. 1896 is the 5th coldest on record. Autumn, 1896 is the 10th coldest on record. Only 1919 and 1952 have been colder since. After such a cold autumn, the following winter wasn't much to write home about, but not complete interest. The winter of 1896/1897 was changeable. December was mostly very mild but with a very cold snap in the run-up to Christmas. Jan. 1897 was cold, especially in the second half, but Feb. 1897 was very mild everywhere.