January 1987

[snowblizzard]

Not the best quality (recorded on VCR 34 years ago!) but brings back fantastic memories of that  January1987 weather event. 

[snowblizzard]

On 09/12/2020 at 16:25, Badgers01 said:

Now that’s a weather forecast - never seen the infamous John Kettley farming forecast from the Sunday online though would love to see that again !

Uploaded today!

[A Face like Thunder]

On 03/02/2021 at 00:21, LetItSnow! said:

Was browsing old charts & this struck me. This re-analysis chart shows -21 uppers scraping across eastern England on 12 Jan. 1987. Is this accurate? If so, must be a record low upper air temperature (I like browsing these historic charts at TWO as the vivid colours give more of a feel to how cold/hot was, imo.). 

The author and meteorologist Ian Currie recorded 1F, -17C at Chipstead Valley, Coulsdon (borders of S London and Surrey) late on 12th Jan. I remember this exceptionally cold spell well and having to motor bike to work on several occasions!   

[Badgers01]

5 hours ago, snowblizzard said:

Uploaded today!

Oh wow that made my day thank you - they don’t make them like that anymore !!

[Weather-history]

From the Guardian

2nd Jan     3rd Jan      5th      6th  

7th             8th     9th    10th 

11th      

12th 

13th  

 

14th 

15th 

16th 

17th 

18th 

 

19th 

 

 

[Weather-history]

Photo montage from January 1987

 

[I remember Atlantic 252]

the days of huge snow events! remember 3 at least

Jan '87, Dec 90 and Feb '91, one of them power went out and had to use candles, has to be one of these 3 events

[Don]

Just wish I'd been in Kent during January 1987!!

[Sunny76]

1 hour ago, I remember Atlantic 252 said:

the days of huge snow events! remember 3 at least

Jan '87, Dec 90 and Feb '91, one of them power went out and had to use candles, has to be one of these 3 events

I think January 1987 and the winter of 90/91 were similar in terms of the length of snowfall. 
 

February 2009, and January and December of 2010 gave us a taste of those winters, despite the shorter periods of snowfall.

 

[Sunny76]

This is almost 36 years ago now.

[Coopsy]

28 minutes ago, Sunny76 said:

I think January 1987 and the winter of 90/91 were similar in terms of the length of snowfall. 
 

February 2009, and January and December of 2010 gave us a taste of those winters, despite the shorter periods of snowfall.

 

Depending on the location of course, but in north Kent, 1987 it was the holy grail. Colder and certainly a lot snowier than any other event. Over 2 feet, where as 1991 was snowy with about a foot and cold but no where near ‘87 for my location of the North Downs. 

A memory I have of 1987 was waking up 3 days in a row to see all trace of the previous days activities and footprints gone in the morning with a fresh layer of deep snow. Something I don’t think I’ve witnessed since. Even in Canada 

Edited October 29, 2022 by Coopsy

[Don]

2 hours ago, Sunny76 said:

February 2009, and January and December of 2010 gave us a taste of those winters, despite the shorter periods of snowfall.

Indeed the 2nd February 2009 Thames streamer event exceeded any snow depth IMBY that I've ever seen in my life (albeit January 1982 came close possibly)!  The snow didn't last long on the ground but considering it out did those cold winters of the 80's and early 90's is nothing to be sniffed at!  I thought at the time it was a one off and I would never see anything the same again, but then January 2010 came along with nearly the same depth and it lasted on the ground longer.

2 hours ago, Sunny76 said:

This is almost 36 years ago now.

I know, incredible isn't it?!

[Weather-history]

A comment I have received

"There was more snow near London in february 86 from what I remember when I was a kid" That can't be right surely? 

There were a lot of light snowfalls here in the Manchester area during February 1986 but the January 1987 had heavier and deeper snowfalls.

[A Face like Thunder]

I was still in S London / Surrey in 1987 and the weather was bitterly cold and snowy in January. I recall attending an FA cup tie at Crystal Palace on 11th Jan (one of the few ties to survive) and have never felt so cold at Selhurst Park as I did that afternoon. Local meteorologist Ian Currie noted a temperature of 1F, -17C at Coulsdon late on the 12th and a daytime maximum of 15.6F, -9.2C at Warlingham also on the 12th. I recall walking along a snow-lined high street in my normally busy local town around that time, a street that was completely devoid of cars. By 1991, I had moved to Blackpool, and was largely unaffected by the snow then.      

[Sunny76]

19 hours ago, Weather-history said:

Photo montage from January 1987

 

I feel like I’ve been transported back to January 1987 with that music. It adds to the cold snowy atmosphere of that period.

 

[Sunny76]

36 minutes ago, A Face like Thunder said:

I was still in S London / Surrey in 1987 and the weather was bitterly cold and snowy in January. I recall attending an FA cup tie at Crystal Palace on 11th Jan (one of the few ties to survive) and have never felt so cold at Selhurst Park as I did that afternoon. Local meteorologist Ian Currie noted a temperature of 1F, -17C at Coulsdon late on the 12th and a daytime maximum of 15.6F, -9.2C at Warlingham also on the 12th. I recall walking along a snow-lined high street in my normally busy local town around that time, a street that was completely devoid of cars. By 1991, I had moved to Blackpool, and was largely unaffected by the snow then.      

Was it really that cold? I remember this blizzard-type conditions from that time, and the wind feeling really cold.

February 1991 was a close second to that, as my school was shut for 2 days. I was living in London during both those snow events. 

[Chesil View]

4 hours ago, Sunny76 said:

Was it really that cold? I remember this blizzard-type conditions from that time, and the wind feeling really cold.

February 1991 was a close second to that, as my school was shut for 2 days. I was living in London during both those snow events. 

Yes sunny76,  it was that cold, according to the late great Phillip Eden  7th-14th Jan 1987 was the coldest week in southern England since the brutal winter of 1740. Max day time temps of minus 8c and minus 9 around parts of the southeast.

[lawrenk]

Jan 87 beats 91 and anything more recently for me in East Sussex. As I recall, our school was shut for nearly a week and the cold was something else. Also had feet high drifts both sides of the A27 between Polegate and Lewes which I’ve never seen since.

[Norrance]

The thing about Jan 1987 was that it was a pretty short lived (7 to 10 days)but really intense spell of weather. Most winters in the previous 10 years to 1987 had much longer cold spells up here at least. A photo from Jan 87 just up the road from me.

[Don]

15 hours ago, Weather-history said:

A comment I have received

"There was more snow near London in february 86 from what I remember when I was a kid" That can't be right surely? 

There were a lot of light snowfalls here in the Manchester area during February 1986 but the January 1987 had heavier and deeper snowfalls.

I was living not too far from London in February 1986 and would say snow depths were less than in January 1987 but lasted on the ground longer.

[damianslaw]

Memories of Jan 87 quite hazy, but I've mentioned before it coincided with a school weather project where we had to measure temp every morning, and I distinctly remember it being around -5 degrees. Recall snow on the ground. drifts up to a feet deep, so probably not much made it this far west. 

Sort of remember the severe weather features on the news. Some of my earliest clearest memories of how the weather was impacting everything. The Oct 87 storm my first vivid weather impact event, seeing the destruction it caused on the news.

[danm]

 

 

Edited November 5, 2022 by danm

[danm]

 

[A Face like Thunder]

This was unashamedly a take on 'Snowdrift at Bleath Gill', a rather more well-known film made by BTF on the old Stainmore line west of Barnard Castle in 1955. Same music, same ending, just updated motive power and in colour! 

[danm]