Portland Paul

August 1992 was a pretty awful month in the Midlands, the end of the month particularly being autumnally wild, wet and windy. A brief warm, humid plume brought spectacular thunderstorms one night (of the 8th - 9th, I think), strangely accompanied by fog for most of the time. Quite a bizzare, tropical feel, with the strong forked lightning lighting up the fog and torrential downpours.

2002 and 1988 get my vote overall for forgettablity. I wouldn't say, personally, that April 2011 is overrated - it was a truly spectacular month here, astonishingly warm considering we jut out into the Channel, surrounded by cold seas at this time of year. The almost continuous sunshine and little wind, or gentle easterly to north-easterly winds of course were responsible for the remarkable consistency of warmth (or heat) that month.

Continued from my above post (1984 - 2012) 1998 - Memorable in the early part, then forgettable - Very warm spell in February, some wet snow at Easter, very wet April, some warm days in May, quite a drab summer and a wet autumn, mild and very windy Xmas. 1999 - Memorable, especially the first half - although the winter was quite boring, spring gave us quite a few spectacular thunderstorms, esp May and early June. Further storms in early July. Mainly very hot, dry July, drab August, wonderful warm September, cold and sunny October, some snow and ice before Xmas. 2000 - Quite forgettable, a very boring mild winter, nice March, soggy April, with some snow early on. A fairly drab year, with the only excitment provided by the late October stormy weather and severe cold and snow after Xmas. 2001 - Memorable at first, increasingly forgettable - Some cold, snowy spells January to March, nice late spring, mixed summer with some hot, humid spells, very dry and calm autumn apart from the warm and wet early to mid October. Heavy snowfall at end December. 2002 - Quite forgettable - Mild and stormy winter, dry and bland April, then very boring apart from some good thunderstorms early August. Dry and bland autumn until stormy late October, then mild and wet, but colder and drier mid December. 2003 - Memorable - Some good cold and snowy spells, then excellent sunny, mild March, and a lot of dry and sunny weather for months on end (apart from a mixed May), very hot at times during summer, and very oppressive early to mid August. Dry autumn, mild and damp later and in December. 2004 - Memorable - Very diverse winter, quite a poor spring but some thundery weather, and a very good late May and early June. Awful, wet late June and early July. Hot later July, a VERY thundery August indeed, mixed autumn but often warm, then very dry from Hallowe'en, a light snow dusting from the north-west later on Xmas Day. 2005 - Memorable - Very stormy 2nd week January, then often dry, windy and mild, Very cold with frequent snow showers late Feb and early March. Very wet just after Easter, a mixed spring, overnight thunder and hail early on 1st May. Mixed June, warmer and thundery later. A decent, mixed summer, similar to 1996, with some hot spells and thunderstorms, not forgetting the 28th July tornado in central south Birmingham. The second half of the year tended to exhibit a north-westerly tendency with HP over central Atlantic, often mild and cloudy, but a few wet cyclonic spells, also very cold late November, and again late December with some snow. 2006 - Memorable - Very dry and cold, then a poor spring and wet May, then hot June and July, mixed August with much thunder later, and that famous warm autumn which became very wet indeed. 2007 - Memorable, less so later - Mild and dry winter, but heavy snowfall 7 - 9 February. Very warm and dry April, very wet second half May, June and July with a couple of violent thunderstorms...often persistent periods of rain. Dry, cool August, dry and bland autumn. 2008 - Fairly forgettable, often dull and wet with a poor summer, but a heavy snowfall on 6th April, a warm first half of May, and unusually early snowfall on 28 October which froze overnight and remained on ground the next day. February, a very sunny month, apart from some freezing fog, saw some spectacular sunsets. 2009 - Memorable, my last year in Birmingham - The first half of February with the snowfalls, then the spring-like second half. Not a bad spring, though increasingly unsettled. Decent June, awful July, kind but cloudy August, decent autumn then very wet and very windy November. Much colder in run up to Xmas, moved to Portland on 18 December - there cold and mixed, back in Brum lying snow on Xmas Day. 2010 - Quite memorable - A cold winter, some slight snow but nothing compared to inland. Very dry first half of the year, glorious June and early July, then downhill, fairly wet autumn, unusual snowfalls for Portland in December, generally very cold and unsually frosty for this part of the world. 2011 - Fairly forgettable - Cold start, then mild and damp February, excellent spring and glorious April (good thunderstorms early May), then a bland mixture, but a good September and early October for warmth (and sea fog at times too). Very boring later in year. 2012 - Fairly forgettable - Very dry and bland, exceelent warm March, then awfully cloudy and wet for much of the year, though late May and late July saw hot spells, and August not a bad month. 2013 - Quite a dull winter, two unsual snowfalls on 18 January and 11 March, very cold March indeed, more changeable and warming April so far ...

My own version (last 20 years, since the age of 9 in Birmingham up to December 2009, then since in Portland, Dorset) - 1984 - Stormy at times January, some snowfall, very cold spell in February, warm and sunny Easter, poor late May / early June, hot July, mixed autumn, quite memorable. 1985 - February blizzards, followed by hard frosts and ice days, mixed March, then quite a poor, wet year, but then an October heatwave, and very cold late November, quite memorable. 1986 - Mild start, cold February and March with hard frosts, poor April, quite good May, fairly poor summer but mainly dry and sunny later but cool. Mild and wet late autumn, fairly forgettable. 1987 - Severe snow mid January, more snow at times in February and early March, otherwise often dry and dull. Excellent warm and fine mid to late April, some thunder in May, terribly wet June, nice early July and mid August, but otherwise a boring summer, Mixed autumn, very mild, dull and dry December, quite memorable. 1988 - Mild, boring winter and spring, apart from oone snowfall on 22nd January. Boring summer, dry autumn, sunny and frosty end October, some snow just after mid November, awfully mild and dry December. Forgettable overall. 1989 - Spring like winter, winter like Easter, Warm May, very thundery later. Renewed hot weather in June and July, spectacular thunderstorms 7th July. Unsettled August, fairly kind autumn, frost and fog mid November, some snow mid December, and thunder on 21st December, memorable. 1990 - Stormy early part, often spring-like in March, lovely late April and early May, soggy June, very hot July, and hot August (most of the month spent in Italy, where very hot and very dry indeed). Lack of thunder that summer. Warmish autumn, boring November, blizzards and thunder on 8th December, very windy later that month with hail and thunder on Christmas Day. Memorable 1991 - Very dry start, severe frosts and deep snowfall early to mid February. Cold April, cold, dry May, cool, wet June. Severe thunderstorms in early hours of 6th July, then a mixed July with warm spells. Warm August and early Septmeber. Average autumn, heavy rime frosts during the December fine spell. Quite memorable. 1992 - Very boring first few months, then a very warm May, lots of thunderstorms later. Thundery early June, fine and warm later. Increasingly poor summer, dire August, average September with big thunderstorms early on 18th. Cold, wet October, very wet early December, much frost and fog over Xmas. Memorable. 1993 - Boring start, then some snowfall and sharp frosts late February- early March. A turn around to a fine, warm mid-March. A mixed, mild spring, with frequent easterly winds in the second half, accompanied by overnight mist and periodic thundery rain. Hot for a short time early June, then severe thunderstorms, then cool, mixed, but warm and fine later. July, dry start then downhill, poor August, cool dry early Septmember then very unsettled and into early October. Then much colder, frosty, sunny, then anticyclonic gloom later and into early November. Briefly unsettled towards mid-month, then cold and frosty with some light snow, then a very mixed December indeed, with some snow, and some severe gales and heavy rain. Very memorable. 1994 - Mild January, cold February with lots of snow later, average but very windy March, poorish April, not a bad May, increasingly warm and muggy in June, with thunder later, often hot and humd in July, very thundery early August, then mixed until an Indian summer in October, warm November, mild December but a cold end, fairly memorable. 1995 - Very memorable indeed, very mixed winter with some heavy snowfalls, dry and mild spring bar a couple of really wet, cold days, boring early June, hot, dry summer with occasional violent thunderstorms, windy late August, poor September, but otherwise a nice autumn, very cold December with some snow, and very severe frosts after Xmas. 1996 - Memorable, spells of very cold easterly winds winter and spring, freezing rain 24th January, blizzards on 6th February. Snowfall mid March and mid April. Mainly dry spring, more northerly in May, warmer and wetter later. Hot, humid spell early June then violent thunderstorms on 7th, much of the summer then often warm and humid, with regular thundery spells. Dry September, cool and windy easterly later, nice autumn, but gales late October, some snow mid November, and lots of fog early to mid December, Very cold end to the year with some snow and severe frosts. 1997 - Cold start, mild, windy February, nice spring, wet June, hot and humid July and August, fine autumn, but cold late October, dull November, brieft snowfall mid December, stormy Xmas, fairly forgettable. I shall do 1998 - 2012 tomorrow

7. 2 Another (last for a while ) cold, wet month

Weymouth beach was packed on that glorious Good Friday 2003. Next day, it was completely deserted when the chilly, brisk easterly wind blew a fair amount of sand right into the town centre under grey overcast skies. I remember around the 15th or 16th April 2007, in Birmingham, the oak trees bursting into leaf a fortnight or so early; my only thoughts at that time, was that there was no going back, hoping not for any frosts to follow. Thankfully, it remained warm. Last April 2011 really was phenomenal, bear in mind that Portland, sticking out to sea would have been prone to chilling sea breezes, but days on end of unbroken sunshine and light winds managed to push temperatures regularly up into the mid to high teens, and on one occasion, 22 c. Overall, it felt quite Meditteranean. Peonies had already finished blooming by the end of the month !! (As a kid, in the mid eighties, my parent's Peonies would normally bloom in mid to late May). The grass had browned quite badly everywhere, but greened up during spectacular thunderstorms on 6th May, that moved up from Biscay - an exceptional warm, dry spring period going out in true style !

That Friday 12th April 1996 in Birmingham, really did feel very raw indeed in the persistent rain which changed to snow in the late afternoon, settling to a depth of about 4 cm around dusk - the latest (in the season) accumulative snowfall I can remember. The next day was cold, dull and hazy, but most of the snow had melted by morning, then suddenly some late afternoon hazy sunshine made it feel distinctly pleasant in the gentle easterly breeze.

There was a decent few centimetres in Brum, then, as John promised it turned positively balmy by the 16th. Shortly after, on Saturday 20th, the unsettled conditions brought severe and damaging westerly gales... Certainly an interesting start to quite an interesting, mixed spring.

On 10th August 2003, we were on holiday in Weymouth, which reached 32 c with virtually no wind, which is pretty impressive for a coastal location. It was so hot and stuffy, and all evening and night, that an irresistable and impromptu dip in the sea at dusk was necessary just to cool down temporarily. I missed the Birmingham storms that afternoon, which were apparently quite spectacular (especially to the north of the city).

My memories are somewhat poor here, but I remember a thin covering of icy lying snow at the end of January 2003, in south-west Birmingham. The Cheshire gap snow was quite impressive on the 5th February (I think), with several hours of snow falling and accumulating to about 7 cm (as, incidentally I watched a male wren building his nest in ivy, ready for his bride to be ) Including one of the mildest Christmasses on record, the 2002- 3 winter experienced temperatures up and down like a yo-yo, with some severe frosts but some mild sunny days too, especially later on, as it led into the sunniest March on record in much of the UK. This up and down winter (temperature-wise) struck me as an unsually dry and sunny season, and with a fair amount of southerly and easterly winds, and much less dull version of the 1995 - 6 winter. The following 2003 - 4 winter also exhibited a somewhat yo-yo temperature regime, and was IMO, a diverse winter. Interestingly, February 2004 was the sixth most northerly February on record, yet was slightly milder than average.

The spring of 1999, (certainly in the Midlands) was also very good from a convective / thundery point of view; particularly early April, and the second half of May.

1991 - Following a cold, dull, very dry May, and a cold, dull, wet June, temperatures rose markedly in early July as very warm and humid easterly airflow arrived from the continent. Late on Friday 5th and during the early hours of Saturday 6th, an intense belt of torrential thunderstorms moved north across many parts of England and Wales. There was much lightning where I lived, in Birmingham, as a series of dramatic storms moved through for several hours, during what was a distinctly warm and sultry night. Strangely, I can find very little info on the net about those storms, and was wondering does anyone have any stats or personal memories of that event?

Thanks for sharing Mr D ! I remember both dates, (living in Birmingham) and both were spectacular ! The 7th July 1989 storm was very impressive for the intense black skies, frequent forked lightning, and very strong gusts (at a guess, nearly 50 mph briefly) just before the heavens opened. I also loved the 7th June 1996 storm - lots of lightning around and just after dusk, gusty winds at times, and large hailstones. The temperature drop was also very marked during the evening and around midnight - I have no records, but I'm guessing around 27 or 28 c to about 11 or 12 c in just a few hours. The following day had gorgeous deep blue skies...

A winter I remember very well for being particularly dull with periods of bitterly cold easterly winds. (Living in Birmingham) The change in early December was quite sudden, from 12 c in fog and rain with gentle SSW winds, to near zero with frequent snow showers two days later in that biting easterly. I will never forget the 24th January, following that night of persistent freezing rain, and everywhere was coated in thick ice just like a glacier mint. As the ice dried, the groaning and creaking of the trees (especially cherries) was weird ! When frequent snow showers followed on the 25th, the powdery snow lay on top of the clear ice, and minor roads were extremely treacherous ! The huge snowfall of 6th February remains unforgotten too - everyone had to dig their way out and dig their way around, and main roads were in an awful mess as the strong SE wind preceding the snowfall had swept the grit-salt away. Another lighter snowfall on 12th March was followed by a penetrating frost, and those familiar leaden skies coupled with a near gale easterly - not pleasant. Another snowfall on 13th April, as a whole day of raw, persistent rain changed to snow in the late afternoon - by dusk (8 pm or so), around 10 cm of snow was lying. The periods of biting winds continued to be an annoying occurrence well into May too, and on the evening of the 9th, coming out of the pub around 11 pm, all the windscreens were already frozen solid.

I would agree with that, as February 2011 (mildest for 9 years) didn't feel spring-like at all, except on 24th, as it was often very dull and damp. In contrast, the previous cold February 2010 had a good number of days that felt spring-like, due to dry and sunny days and positive warmth to the sun out of the cold north-easterly breeze.

We heard it loud and clear on Christmas Day 1990. Two thunder claps followed a pretty violent hailstorm, around 10 am. The storm happened as that cold front moved eastwards, leaving the afternoon bright and clear. Apart from blustery showers in 1998 and some leftover rain/ sleet in 2000 and also early Xmas day 2001, most of the Christmas Day's in south-west Birmingham have been dry; often mild but sometimes cold and frosty, or even some light snow showers (1993(a.m), 1996(a.m), 2001 (p.m), 2004 (late p.m). We moved to Portland just before Xmas 2009, and of course missed the lying snow on both Xmas days of 2009 and 2010. So I guess 1990 must have been the last 'proper' wet Christmas Day for us.

In Birmingham: Earliest falling snow: 28 October 2008 Earliest lying snow: 28 - 29 October 2008 Latest falling snow: 7 May 1997 Latest lying snow: 13 April 1996

I used to live in south-west Birmingham until 2009... Late November 1985 had a cold snap with some light snow covering and sharp overnight frosts. Another cold snap occurred in late December 1985, and lasted into early January 1986, with some snowfall. February 1986 was largely bitterly cold with severe frosts and long-lasting snow cover which was not especially deep, and the cold lasted into March 1986. I remember November and December 1986 as being fairly mild and unsettled, but January 1987 turned much colder with bitter easterly winds towards mid-month and powder snow. I have a photo of our road taken on 14th January 1987; the snow drifted so deep that only the tops of some cars were visible. Another heavy snowfall occurred on 7th March 1987, with several inches of snow accumulating later on that day.

The BBC (9 o'clock news back then?) weather forecast on 17th September 1992 - a humid night with some patchy rain in places was forecast. Two hours later, the first rumbles of thunder heard to the south, and from midnight till about 2:30 am, spectacular thunderstorms with torrential rain, vivid lightning and cracking loud thunder. A splendid surprise! Another, from the BBC, was the forecast of rain clearing later tonight to scattered wintry showers for tomorrow - on the evening of 7th December 1990. Thunder woke me up at 2 am, and I looked outside to see that an inch of snow had already settled. By 8 am, heavy snow was still falling in the strong NNE wind as a trough stalled over south-east England, and the blizzard raged all day, so that well over 30 cm of snow had accumulated by late afternoon.

Mid November, warm and dandy, Christmas needing warming brandy. Mild zonality present in mid November will last for eight out of the following ten weeks!

If first Sunday in advent be anticyclonic, then batten down hatches before your Christmas Gin and Tonic. If fog settles in for Yuletide, then by New Year's Eve you'll sledge and slide. A January spring brings Lent snow. If May Day be fine and hot, Whitsun will be full of grot.

A fine dusting of snow grains from about midday to 3pm, intermittently falling.

For me, the 13 cm of snow on the morning of 6th April, the prolonged evening thunderstorms of 28th July, and the 3 cm of snow on 28th October, followed by another slushy covering in the late evening of 29th October - so a double whammy from a rare event! Also the wierd, rather blinding white and pink skies at dusk for 3 or 4 evenings in February, which was a brilliantly sunny month, then a couple of days later, freezing fog producing heavy rime and very fine ice crystals in the air, like a very fine snow.

A little snow recorded in SW birmingham that winter - none until mid February though: Sunday 16th February 1992 - Light early morning snow shower, gusty northerly winds. Tuesday 18th February 1992 - Overcast, 2 cm slushy snow lying in morning, with falling sleet and snow dying out into a drizzle. Wednesday 15th April 1992 - Strong NNW winds, with a deep low over Denmark. Frequent snow and soft hail showers throughout the day, with temporary heavy dustings, thawing quickly in sunny intervals. Otherwise a very dry and boring winter, as I remember, save a very frosty period in the first half of December 1991 - with sub zero maxes and heavy crystaline rime frosts.

I was four years old then, so its my earliest recollection of snow. Frightfully icy too, as I just about remember, I did'nt like walking on it at all!