The last really severe winter of the 20th Century occurred in 1978/79, and although not as cold as 1963 or as snowy as 1947, it was memorable none the less. Much of the UK experienced long cold spells with heavy snowfall. The other thing which makes 1979 special is that it was the first severe winter to occur in the UK after colour photography had become widespread and was recent enough for people in their 30s or older to remember. I can personally recall heavy snow that year, especially during the middle part of February. Although a number of cold winters followed in the 1980s, none of them could match 1979.