11-12 July 1888, snow was reported to have fallen over the Isle of Wight, Kent, East Midlands, East Yorkshire, Isle of Man, and the south Midlands. The snow may have been mistaken for soft hail in parts of southern England. 16 June 1889, snow occurred across the high ground of N England and Scotland.
On 2 June 1975 snow showers forced the abandonment of several cricket matches across the country. The snowiest winter of the twentieth century in the United Kingdom was 1947. Between 22 January and 17 March, snow fell every day somewhere in the country.
You're probably less likely to have these around in summer though. But what happens if it snows in summer? You might be thinking it's impossible, but snow has been recorded in London in summer before.
But if I'm honest, what I remember most about 1976 was the snow! Believe it or not, the Midlands was struck by a dramatic snowstorm on June 2 — right at the supposed start of summer. Such was its ferocity that it forced the cancellation of a cricket match in Buxton, Derbyshire.
September saw snow in Dartmoor! A snowy period. 1920-23 were little or average. 1ft of snow fell in Plymouth and Southern England saw 6inches+ widespread.
Week Ahead 05/02/2024 – Disruptive snow for some – Met Office weather forecast UK
Has the UK ever had snow in October?
30 October 1810, snow occurred in London. 20-21 October 1825, snow fell in parts of London. 7 October 1829, 3cm of snow fell in London. 29 October 1836, up to 30cm of snow fell across parts of London.
Serious snowfall in the winter of 1947. Thousands of people were cut off for days by snowdrifts up to seven metres deep during the winter of 1947, which saw exceptional snowfall. Supplies had to be flown in by helicopter to many villages, and the armed forces were called in to help clear roads and railways.
Part of hourly British Isles chart for 10am on 2 June 1975 showing plotted observations of snowfall (small stars) especially across eastern areas of England. Sleet and snow were reported in East Anglia and the Midlands and even penetrated as far south as the London area.
On the 18th of February 1978, it started snowing. heavily. The blizzard turned out to be one of the. biggest of the century and the worst for 15 years at the.
However, the Dickensian scene of widespread snow lying on the ground on Christmas Day is much rarer. There has only been a widespread covering of snow on the ground (where more than 40% of stations in the UK reported snow on the ground at 9 am) four times since 1960—in 1981, 1995, 2009 and 2010.
It only snows an average of 30 inches in throughout the year in England. Unfortunately, there are some instances where the cold and snowy weather gets extreme. This was the case in 1890, which is when the worst November snowstorm in England took place.
We last saw snow in May all the way back in… 2011, just last year, and we also saw more snow in 2010. If we look back through the records dating back to 1910, the snowiest May on record was most likely in 1979 when 342 weather observation sites reported snow on 2 May.
While the chance of wintry weather does tend to decrease as April goes on, there have been significant April snow events in the past. In 1981, the end of the month was blasted with 20-30 cm of snow widely across England, even as far south as Gloucestershire . The chance of some snow showers in the north to end April.
The deepest snow ever recorded in an inhabited area of the UK was near Ruthin in North Wales during the severe winter of 1946-47. A series of cold spells brought large drifts of snow across the UK, causing transport problems and fuel shortages. During March 1947 a snow depth of 1.65 metres was recorded.
Temperature-wise, it's estimated that 2023 will be the hottest year on record - and probably in the last 120,000 years - with the Met Office forecasting 2024 to be hotter still. The UK has already warmed by more than 1C above the pre-industrial average, leading to winters shortening and summers lengthening.
Though it has been reported in some places that a snow bomb could hit the UK, the Met Office has debunked those claims, saying that while there will be low pressure across the UK, only higher ground will see snow and any resemblance to a snow bomb is incredibly unlikely.
Tulloch Bridge and Aviemore in Scotland recorded a mixture of rain and snow on Christmas day - despite parts of the country reaching the highest minimum daily temperature on record for 25 December.
Of course, summer snow, while unusual, is not unknown. In 2015, Mauna Kea, Hawaii, was hit by 1.5 inches of snow on July 17. Stateside, snowfall hit in the Pacific Northwest and as far south as Utah, which normally brags about having “The best snow on Earth” but didn't expect it to fall in July.
Imagine a time when snow was lying on the ground for more than 60 days and the temperature barely climbed above freezing for three whole months. That was the winter of 1962/63 - the coldest on record in East Anglia. It was dubbed the Big Freeze as the region stayed sub-zero for week after week.
The highest temperature during the 1976 heatwave was 35.9 °C (96.6 °F), 0.8 °C below the record at the time of 36.7 °C (98.1 °F) set on 9 August 1911. As of 2022, 1976 has the 13th hottest day in UK history. In the Central England Temperature series, 1976 is the hottest summer for more than 350 years.
So, although some milder and unsettled weather appears likely, there could be prolonged spells of drier weather as high pressure becomes dominant. It could turn cold at times with the more blocked weather too, though confidence is low on how cold and where may be coldest and see risk of wintry weather.
Orkney Islands. The Orkney Islands lie off the northeast tip of mainland Scotland and are grouped into the North and South Isles. The Loch of Hundland on Mainland recorded the most snow, with snow falling on 59 days each year.
