Here are the detailed (turning out to be lengthy) facts about very warm/hot summers (for England) in my life, how they ended, and how I remembered them. I lived near Lincoln from 1972 to August 1989, and lived in Lowestoft since September 1989. Hope you've enjoy reading it (and hope it's not too long winded!). Please let me know if there are any inaccuracies.
Sources of info include: www.trevorharley.com/weather_web_pages/britweather_years.html, and, Weatherwise: The "Sunday Telegraph" Companion to the British Weather (Paperback).
2018 - A impressively very dry, hot and sunny early summer. So far this summer is on par with 1976 and may even challenge it. No measurable precipitation here in Lowestoft from 2 June to 27 July. Drought began in early May but broken by some severe thunderstorms in in late month (including 1 modest storm here). However, it was broken late on 27 July with some much welcomed rain, and there were some severe storms over parts of the country. However, the early summer has been noted for lack of thunderstorms, and the humidity has been low untill late July.
How will this summer end? July turned out to have an unsettled and wet ending, but hot, dry and sunny weather has now returned for central/southern areas for at least early August. But how long will it last? Well only time will tell!
2014 - June was mostly warm and sunny after an unsettled start, and July had good deal of very warm, sunny weather, although it was actually quite an unsettled month with some notable thunderstorms. The highest temp was 32.3 C at Swanscombe Marsh (Kent), and the average sunshine was 258 hrs over England and Wales.
August a had a warm, sultry start, and quite thundery too, but the heat ended abruptly by 10th, as ex-hurricane Bertha caused a major shift in NH jet stream, ushering in cool, unsettled and wet rest of the month. It was the coolest August since 1993.
Mostly warm, dry, sunny conditions returned for September.
2013 - After a dry but uneventful June, July was a superb hot, dry, sunny month. Max temparature of 28 C or more was recorded at least one location on each of those 19 days. Humidity was low in early to mid month with relatively cool nights and lack of t'storms, but turned humid and quite thundery with warm nights in late month. Highest temperature was 33.5C which was recorded at Heathrow and Northolt. The 19th saw the highest temperature for Northern Ireland with 30.1C at Castlederg, Scotland with 29.7C at Cupar (Fife), and Wales, with 31.4C
August was cooler, more variable, but still with plenty of pleasently warm, fine weather. This led to an early heatwave in September (with 30.2C at Writtle, nr Chelmsford, Essex, on Thursday 5th), but ended by the 6th, ushering a rather cool, dull rest of the month. However, there were still some fine days.
2006 - A mostly warm, dry sunny June, followed by an amazingly hot, dry, sunny July with a CET of 19.7 C. The highest temperature was 36.5 at Wisley (Surrey) and 36.3C near Gatwick Airport in Sussex. It also reached 30.5C at Prestiwck in Scotland, and a new Welsh July record of 34.2 C (Penhow, Newport). 30C was reached somewhere in the country every day from 16th to 27th, except 23rd. There were scattered thunderstorms, several severe ones. However, the hot summer ended abruptly at start of August, ushering in a cool, miserable, very unsettled and wet month. Very warm conditions returned for September with Met Office CET of 16.8 C, but was actually a quite unsettled, thundery month. Flooding occurred in Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft on 25th, with Lowestoft recording 52.9 mm in the 24 hour period ending 1800 UTC
2003 - June was very warm and sunny with a CET of 16.1 C. July was also very warm. It started off cool and wet, but always warm from the 5th. The 2nd half was actually quite unsettled, but there was a notable heatwave in mid month.
August was very hot, dry and sunny, with an amazing, record-breaking heatwave in early month; 38.1 C was recorded in Gravesend on 10th. It turned much cooler, cloudier, with much welcomed rain in last week.
Very pleasant warm, dry conditions returned for September. It ended around the 25th/26th when a marked cold front swept across the country.
1996 - Not as hot as summer '95, but June and July were very pleasant months with very warm, dry, sunny conditions. August was quite unsettled and thundery at times, but had frequent spells of very warm, sunny weather. It ended in late month with cool, very wet, showery and windy spell. Fine, pleasant conditions returned by early September, but turned cool from 4th. Worked at a local theme park, and enjoyed the summer weather after a bad year.
1995 - The summer started off rather late, as June was very cool, miserable and wet in early half here in Lowestoft. It turned mostly dry and sunny in 2nd half. After a brief hot spell, it was mostly cool here with NE'erly winds. Much warmer elsewhere, but a cold front brought a dramatic temperature drop across the country on 30th (but not very noticeable here), but had very little cloud and no rain.
July was mostly hot, dry and sunny. Some major t’storms too. A severe storm caused numerous lightning damage across E Anglia on 11th; it blew up the computers at a local theme park.
August was an impressively dry, hot and sunny month; the hottest and sunniest August on record. Unfortunately, was mostly ill so could not enjoy the Summer.
The last week turned much cooler and cloudier, signalling major change by September, resulting in a dull, very unsettled and wet month. There were some impressive lightning displays over the Sea, as rPM airmass slowly flowed over very warm waters.
Warm, dry sunny conditions returned for October, slowly fading by November.
1994 - June was quite cool and unsettled till 12th, then very warm and sunny thereafter. It was settled at first, then quite thundery; severe t’storms swept NE across SE England on 24th, causing marked asthma outbreak. Here, I saw very frequent spider lightnings to the SW but weakened considerablely by time it arrived overhead.
July was mostly very hot and sunny. However, it was humid with regular thunderstorms and some of these were violent; 22,000 lightning strikes over Staffordshire and N Derbyshire. Many parts of SE England had hottest nights of the 20th Century, with minima of over 20 C.
The heat did not last long into August. It was hot and thundery at first, then unsettled, wet and much cooler (though still quite warm here). Thunderstorms occurred regularly. This similar unsettled, wet theme continued for most of September; thunderstorms occurring regularly over very warm southern N Sea with some nice lightning displays.
1990 - An another hot summer but shorter than that of 1989. After a warm, dry May, with a notable heat wave in early month, June was actually quite a cool, unsettled, westerly-type month, which continued into 1st week of July with a wet and windy spell. Summer set in after that, and so became hot, dry and sunny for the rest of the month.
August was mostly very warm, dry and sunny. There was an amazing heatwave at the start of the month; max temps of 35 was quite widespread, with 37.1 C recorded at Cheltenham on the 3rd. A much cooler, fresh spell with much welcomed rain fell around 14-15th, but further warm, dry, sunny spells occurred during the rest of the month, ending a band of lively thunderstorms sweeping across E Anglia from the SW.
The summer type weather gradually came to a close in September, with a cool, wet spell, but there was also some pleasent, mellow sunny days. Autumn set in from the 19th for the remainder of the month.
1989 - A very pleasently warm, very dry and sunny summer. Not as hot as the summers of '83 and '76, but it was noted for being very prolonged. It was broken with shortlived cool, rainly spells, just enough to freshen things up very nicely, but very warm, dry sunny weather soon returned.
It started at beginning of May resulting in mostly very warm, dry and sunny month. It was the driest May of the century, with CET of 13.0 C, and over 300 hours of sunshine was widely recorded for the first time since 1909. However, it was also noted for a severe Halifax storm that produced approx 193.2 mm of rain at Walshaw Den Lodge nr Hebden Bridge.
There was a cool, unsettled spell at the beginning and the end of June, with a warm, sunny spell sandwiched in between. July was a hot, dry and sunny month, with a CET of 18.2 C. I went to Washington DC in late month, which was very hot, but amazed how unsettled and wet it was with regular thunderstorms (the River Potomac levels were very high); the type of weather actually more like southern England in September 1995 or August 2004, but 10 degrees hotter! Back in UK, the highest max temp was 34.2 C at Heathrow on the 22nd; the highest temperature since 1976.
Unsettled weather started to make inroads in August for the NW, but mostly very warm, dry sunny conditions continued for the central and SE areas. A mostly cool, northerly spell set in by the end of the month.
However, mostly warm, dry, sunny conditions soon returned and dominated September. 27 C was widespread across England on the 7th. It became quite thundery too in mid month. The summer finally came to a close by end of September.
1984 - Not as hot as summer as 1983, but there was plenty of very warm, fine weather. The year was also noted for very dry, warm, sunny April but with a very cold start!
June started off quite unsettled, then it was mostly warm and dry, particularly sunny in the E. July was mostly very warm, dry and sunny. There was also some notable thunderstorms; the lightning causing severe damage to the York Minster on 9th.
August was mostly hot and sunny. However, there was an cool, unsettled spell at the start of the month with some heavy rain and showers, much welcomed at the time, but mostly hot, fine weather resumed on 8th and dominated for rest of the month; 32C was recorded at Jersey on the 20th; and even reached 31C at Prestwick.
There was a heatwave at the start of September, but the hot summer came to an abrupt end on the 4th. Mostly cool, very unsettled, wet conditions dominated the rest of the month. Also quite a thundery month, too.
1983 - A notably hot, dry and sunny summer, the 1st one I remember very well (I was 12). It didn't really get going till July, but it was much welcomed after a cold, wet late March, April and May. I got quite worried about possible crop failures as they've had a slow start.
June started off unsettled. There were some severe thunderstorm over parts of England with hailstones up to 75mm in Manchester and Brighton. Thereafter is was mostly dry. There was a dry, sunny spell in mid month, but with quite chilly NE'erly winds.
July was impressively hot, dry and sunny; the hottest July of 20th century (CET of 19.C, I think). Max temperatures of 32C was reached somewhere in the country every day from the 12-16th. I was camping in the Yorkshire Dales and the caravan was like a furnace; the outside max temp was 31 C. This month was noted for some severe thunderstorms and there were with a number of lightning deaths. There was all night t'storms here nr Lincoln before a cool break at the end of the month.
August had a brief cool, showery start (a much welcome break), but fine weather soon returned. Not as hot as July but very pleasant warm, dry sunny conditions dominated the rest of the month. It was very warm with constant sunshine when I was on a week holiday in Lowestoft but some impressive thundery showers occurred over the Fens on my way home, the only other unsettled spell I'd remembered occuring that month.
The hot summer came to a close in early September, and cool, unsettled, wet conditions dominated the month; there was notable southerly gales in the early month. However, there was a warm spell, with mellow sunshine in late month; a max of 26 C was recorded in Exeter and Jersey.
1976 - A superb hot, dry, sunny summer. I don't have much memories of it as I was only 5 years old. June had a short cool, rather unsettled spell at first, but the high pressure set in by 7th and mostly hot, dry sunny weather dominated the rest of the month. The was an amazing prolonged heatwave from 23 June to 7 July; 32 C was recorded somewhere in the UK, the highest being 35.6C at Mayflower Park in Southampton on the 28th.
July was a superb hot, dry and sunny month. 27 C was exceeded every day in some part of the country from 22 June to 16 July, highest being 35.9 C in Cheltenham on the 3rd. I seem to remember that windows were fitted with Aluminium sheet to keep out the heat!
August was another mostly hot, dry sunny month. Many parts of the south recorded 330 hours of sunshine and there was a maxima of around 30 C on 24-25th, with some places hitting 32 C. The hot summer ended abruptly on 27th with dramatic thunderstorms, just after the Ministry for Drought came into being. Thereafter, September was a cool, very unsettled and wet month. The rain never stopped falling, and very wet conditions continued throughout October; the drought truly ended!
1975 - A mostly very warm, dry and sunny summer. It was the beginning of a long drought that culminated in the famous hot summer of 1976, but there was a break in September. For me, I have very little memory of it, however (I was 4).
June started with an unusually cold, northerly spell, in fact snow fell and lay on high ground in the Midlands on morning of 2nd, and snow actually stopped cricket play at Buxton for a day. However, a major change in the weather occurred by the 6th; the high pressure becoming established and max temps of 25 C was widespread. It reached 28 C on 7th. The rest of the month was mostly hot, dry and sunny, but with some notable thunderstoms.
July was mostly very warm, but actually was quite an unsettled month and there were some severe t'storms. Howver it was very dry in the S.
August was an impressively hot month, but which is also noted for some severe thunderstorms. 34 C was reached in the S (not sure exact location though) on 8th, and 31.2 C was reached in Glasgow on 4th, the highest for 107 years. There was an amazing thunderstorm, known as the Hampstead Storm, in London on 14th. It was a supercell storm, and 170.8 mm fell over Hampstead in 2.5 hours and hail as large as 16 mm reported. Cars floated on the streets which were like rivers, and 1 person was drowned. The underground was also flooded and N London rail service were disrupted for 24 hrs.
The hot summer ended abruptly on 12th of September, resulting in a cool, unsettled and wet rest of the month. However drought returned in October, which was a quiet, settled month.
Edited by user
04 August 2018 15:42:52
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