Summer of 95

And a couple more, that last one was near Spica

5 more flashes, make that 7, no 8: all between west and northwest. And the Plough is bright overhead, Leo getting flashed, a couple towards Auriga too

Now this is weird- at last a flash of lightning, in a starry sky.....

Hate to be pessimistic but stuff coming up from the south these days does one of two things: Die out around the Shropshire/Herefordshire/Worcs border (and maybe kick off again over Cheshire) Come storming up the Severn Valley only to do the Bridgnorth Right Turn and end up in Birmingham.

Still nothing here- completely overcast, muggy, yet no rain since that brief shower at 1900 and not heard a single rumble. Everything SE me right yet it just won't kick off round here-again.

Just pretty light rain still, not heard anything Telford and Oswestry have both been hit according to the radar-come on what's wrong!!!!!!!!!!

Black all directions, smells of rain, a few drops coming down- no thunder. Hmmmm

Feels nice and warm, 24 C, skies have actually cleared in the last hour. Better to be in the sun than under cloud 5 miles outside the storm zone!

It's stayed sunny for my BBQ and hit 21C - 2 out of 3, now come on Arsenal......

Beautiful morning, 17C and climbing, BBQ stuff ready for later....

No sun for over an hour now, its not thundery looking just boring and grey. Those charts- 975hpa? Thats only about 2000ft, how can there be a low at that level in the middle of a strong high? BBQ planned for tomorrow before the cup final, the clag had better stay away.

High pressure=sinking air=no convection??

In winter no, but a 1035mb high centered over England in May should. Every single high this spring has been full of cloud, haze and mist.

Already up to 18C by 11in the sun, but now 5/8 cloudy and completely grey to the west. Its a 1030+ high and yet again a clear day is impossible. What pressure do we need nowadays, 1050?

Completely overcast now, managed to struggle up to 19C but seems unlikely to go any higher. Last year, the coldest spring for 50 years, had hit 23C by May 7th.

Partly cloudy here, large areas of blue but also of cloud. Total cloud cover very close according to the satellite- its only a 1035mb high after all. Need the cloud to vanish if were to have a shot at 20C.

Totally clouded over now, the latest Sat shows a perfect example of Shropshire Cloud. Just a mass of muck over here with broken stuff at most elsewhere. Happens time and again.

Was beautiful at 6am, quite a bit of cloud around now, see tomorrow's MO forecast has changed from sunny to mostly cloudy. Even with a 1030mb high right over us we can't get a clear day it seems.

First clear evening in about 3 weeks tonight. Saturn, which I've been waiting to get a look at with the binoculars, has now gone through opposition (last time I saw it it was due south about 2am) and we finally get a clear night when the moon is right by it. So thats that one ruined. Jupiter is now getting low, though still prominent and showing its Galilean moons in the bins. Orion has gone; it was still fully visible last time it was clear. But Saturn being a non starter was made up for by seeing Mercury for the first time in over 2 years. Its quite easy with a clear horizon to the NW about an hour after sunset. Best chance this year for the next 2 weeks, Not much to look at in binoculars, but always feels good to.spot it

The same Cheshire Gap that didn't provide so much as one of its snow showers last winter? It owes us one this summer, by staying away with its rain and annoying breezes.

Yep, I was in Telford when that cell passed over, I just thought "this will fire off as soon as it leaves Shropshire"

2003 was certainly very overrated, especially outside the SE- as is 2013 to some extent. Apart from those 10 days in July it wasn't really anything special. 2006 is so low down presumably because of the August, I wonder what it would score with August and September swapped round?

Sun is coming out intermittently now, too little too late both for warmth and to set off storms though. Funny how it clears up here once storms are kicking off everywhere else...

Just decks of cloud and on off rain again. Why is it always the east that gets the fun these days?

Horrible again, rain before dawn followed by cloud and now raining again. Only 10C and feeling very October or November like yet again.