Great British Weather

[Cookie]

I really enjoyed it and thier isn't many tv shows on the main channels that are soley about the weather so makes a nice change!

[Coast]

Aimed at the general public, I think it hit it's mark. Miss Shoreline enjoyed it and she normally rolls her eyes at weather stuff!!! ( I think that may be my over-enthusiastic nature).

[Andy Bown]

I think the UK should have its own Weather Channel with similar topical wather related news, like they do in the USA. Though I suppose it would have to cover European weather aswell to give it sufficient content. Carol could be one of the presenters along with Michael Fish.

I am sure SKY tv had a Weather Channel in the mid-late 90s? And unless I am very much mistaken I think Carole Kirkwood and Louise Lear were involved with it?

As an aside : Chris Hollins went from deepest Cornwall live on tv at 20.30 yesterday to deepest Kent live on tv at the Open golf by 06.00 today!

[Mesoscale]

I personally enjoyed the show as it was a bit of fun I could sit and relax waching it rather then having to properly think about it. I think people are ignorant to think this was going to be something at Degree level. What did you expect with it being called The Great British Weather? I think we all know theres nothing great about it.

Its just a bit of fun and I think alot of people could understand it and enjoy it which is the first steps, it might have sparked some interest in the weather and they may end up on this forum.

[Sprites]

not the best weather programme ever made really :lol: , there again it may of been competeing with soaps and cooking programmes<IMG class=bbc_emoticon alt= src="http://nwstatic.co.uk/forum/public/style_emoticons/default/lazy.gif"> Edited July 14, 2011 by Sprites

[Nick L]

Never mind Tomaz Shafferknacker..the best bit was Michael Fish, especially the story of him doing his piece to camera with a mouse in his pocket (I'm sure it lived a long and happy life in the Blue Peter garden after that).

http://www.nmmshop.c...ge-magnets.html

....isn't it amazing what you can buy on the internet !!

Off topic but thanks for that link, the fridge decorations in our new house are sorted now

On the show, I didn't think it was that bad. It's hardly a BBC 4 documentary is it? It's aimed at families - hence being on BBC 1 at 7.30!

I am sure SKY tv had a Weather Channel in the mid-late 90s? And unless I am very much mistaken I think Carole Kirkwood and Louise Lear were involved with it?

As an aside : Chris Hollins went from deepest Cornwall live on tv at 20.30 yesterday to deepest Kent live on tv at the Open golf by 06.00 today!

They did. But it lasted no more than a couple of years due to low viewership. There's no real demand for it sadly unlike in the states where the weather can go from benign to a matter of life and death in a matter of minutes.

[cheeky_monkey]

Mostly disappointed. I guess my problem is expecting a much higher level of content, but has JH quite rightly explained, NetW is not the only audience for the programme. Bugger. I like NickF's suggestion of a Europe wide weather channel ...

Be a waste of time and money..they have the weather channel here in Canada 24 hrs/365 days...its watchable for 5 mins then it just on a loop and continually repeats the same news and stories over and over and over and over....till death do us part etc etc

Edited July 14, 2011 by cheeky_monkey

[knocker]

Its just a bit of fun and I think alot of people could understand it and enjoy it which is the first steps, it might have sparked some interest in the weather and they may end up on this forum.

In that case the next three episodes should be cancelled immediately.

[AderynCoch]

What we need is an equivalent programme on BBC Four. Like a meteorological version of The Sky At Night.

[mcweather]

When I first heard of this show I hoped that at last we might get a programme about weather that treated us like adults then I saw the cast list and my heart sank. Chris Hollins and Alexander Armstrong both of whom I like in their normal roles just got in the way of what could have been a really informative programme.

Why oh why can't we find a David Attenborough or a Prof Brian Cox for Meteorology to increase our understanding by treating us like adults.

[chilly milly]

I'm really pleased it was a programme to entertain and inform everyone. Okay it wasn't the most scientifically based show, but my nine year old enjoyed it, so much to the point that she asked me to record it, and is excited for next week and the discussion of clouds. In fact she told me on the way to school that she wished she could have a job to do with weather, but she'd never do it, as she doesn't want to be on the tv. When I explained that people work out the weather and don't have to go on the tv I could see her mind ticking over. One school child interested in meteorology. Job done!

[knocker]

I'm really pleased it was a programme to entertain and inform everyone. Okay it wasn't the most scientifically based show, but my nine year old enjoyed it, so much to the point that she asked me to record it, and is excited for next week and the discussion of clouds. In fact she told me on the way to school that she wished she could have a job to do with weather, but she'd never do it, as she doesn't want to be on the tv. When I explained that people work out the weather and don't have to go on the tv I could see her mind ticking over. One school child interested in meteorology. Job done!

Excellent post. Hits the nail right on the head.

[VillagePlank]

As an aside : Chris Hollins went from deepest Cornwall live on tv at 20.30 yesterday to deepest Kent live on tv at the Open golf by 06.00 today!

You mean they actually have machines that fly in the West-Country, now?

[damianslaw]

Didn't see last weeks episode, but I will be tuning into this weeks just to see whether it is watchable. I am not expecting it to teach me anything I don't know already. The trailer for this weeks asks the question why is the lake district so wet.. I know the answer but some people may not - I'm expecting some very watered down explanation making reference to air over the irish sea rising over the fells and condensing into cloud and rain as it cools. I note they are going to fly over the lake district to show this.

Hopefully it will be more bearable than some recent shows about our recent winters and summers.

Edited July 17, 2011 by damianslaw

[Coast]

You know its OK. Because it's aimed at a slightly different audience from here, it covers the subject it chooses quite informatively, albeit in a basic way.

[The watcher]

I feel that this week they tried to cover up some of their summer forecast mistakes by saying that June and July is the return of the Westerlies with unsettled weather likely to dominate. That is just not true at all, there is no pattern to British weather. Westerlies are our dominant weather source and in the space of 2 months we of course have an excellent chance of seeing them return, but to say it returns during a certain month in summer every year is brainwash material. Only a few years ago June and early July seemed the best of our summer with August being a washout. I enjoyed watching it however even though what they are teaching or showing is stuff I learnt when I was 8 years old.

[Cookie]

Enjoyed this weeks again!

[johnholmes]

I feel that this week they tried to cover up some of their summer forecast mistakes by saying that June and July is the return of the Westerlies with unsettled weather likely to dominate. That is just not true at all, there is no pattern to British weather. Westerlies are our dominant weather source and in the space of 2 months we of course have an excellent chance of seeing them return, but to say it returns during a certain month in summer every year is brainwash material. Only a few years ago June and early July seemed the best of our summer with August being a washout. I enjoyed watching it however even though what they are teaching or showing is stuff I learnt when I was 8 years old.

Sorry the comment about the European Monsoon is an established fact. Although its not a monsoon in the sense we think of the word for the Indian sub continent. It does, statistically, mark a return or reactivation of the general westerly pattern for NW Europe, Scandinavia and the UK. No less than Philip Eden has written that is seems to occur about 7 out of 10 summers. These wind patterns tend to weaken in late winter into spring and then become rather more noticeable in the summer months

.

They are actually part of the Asian monsoon which can be show on wind maps over the centuries as the mean pressure over Asia changes from high, in winter, to low, in summer. This tends to extend out into Europe. There is also a probable link in the overall global cycle that allows the sub arctic ice to melt with the jet stream ‘usually’ moving further north as the north pole warms thus decreasing the thermal gradient from equator to pole. The sub tropical jet stream also shifts from its normal winter position.

All very complex, well worth reading a few climate of the world references as opinions do differ. But it s a reasonably accurate comment to make going back to the initial remark.

[Thundery wintry showers]

I recall that Philip Eden's 1995 book Weatherwise had quite an in-depth discussion of the "return of the westerlies", noting that northerlies reach their highest frequency in early June, but are somewhat more rare after 20 June- this is because the frequency of blocking in the Atlantic reduces sharply and the jet gets more active, bringing more frequent westerlies in. This is why most of Ireland, western Scotland and north-west England has May as the sunniest month of the year with progressively cloudier and wetter conditions setting in, on average, during June and July. Conversely in eastern areas, where the westerlies are less reliable sources of cloudy wet weather, June and July tend to be similar sunshine and rainfall wise to May.

[Coast]

Sorry the comment about the European Monsoon is an established fact.

As borne out by this article from 2005:

IT STEALS the show at Glastonbury, rarely misses Wimbledon and loves making a splash at garden parties. A meteorologist has identified it as the European monsoon, a feature of Britain’s built-in weather clock. Although not as spectacular as the Indian monsoon, it is a predictable phenomenon, Craig Wallace, of the University of East Anglia, said yesterday as our version of extreme weather made a dramatic debut with rain falling in tropical proportions and lightning striking the South and South West.

Thunderstorms brought a dramatic end to the sweltering heat wave in many parts of the country amid warnings of more severe weather to come; but, in a bizarre assortment of weather patterns, sunbathers crowded the beach in Brighton for much of the day while a tornado struck in Coventry.

Storms swept away the sunshine as 3,600 lightning strikes were recorded in the South West and Wales, and 10,000 homes in Devon were left without power when engineers delayed repairs because of the ferocity of the storm.

Dr Wallace has run computer models of Britain’s weather for 30 years and identified the monsoon as a foreseeable period in our yearly climate cycle. He said: “I was pretty surprised it stood out that strongly; the westerly circulation gets weaker at the end of spring then strengthens at the beginning of June.â€

After fairly quiet weather in May, fresh winds tend to blow in from the west in early June, which is why the monsoon is also called the return of the westerlies. These winds often sweep in depressions off the Atlantic, hitting Britain with cool, wet and sometimes stormy weather. After a brief respite between June 5 and 11, when high pressure from the Azores builds, another sharp return to the westerlies begins around June 18, bringing thunder and heavy rains.

What drives this monsoon is more difficult to explain. “It’s so predictable it seems it’s easy to understand – but it’s not,†Dr Wallace said.

Part of the weather pattern is tied to the change of the seasons, with the sun high in the sky towards the summer solstice; but the return of the westerlies is also connected with cold air over the Greenland ice sheets, weather in the Arctic and perhaps also the start of the Indian monsoon, which likewise begins in early June. The monsoon can last for a fortnight or longer. Although forecasts show fine weather returning to much of the country tomorrow, another belt of rain is expected next week. Over the years, Dr Wallace believes, the European monsoon will strengthen with global warming.

Colin Paterson, 33, filmed the tornado from the top floor of his house in Coventry at about 7.30am after his wife, Teresa, spotted it. The IT security consultant said: “A storm had just gone overhead and seeing that tornado made me realise how small we all are.â€

No one was reported hurt by the phenomenon but lightning injured several people and caused damage to scores of houses. A 12-year-old boy was in intensive care last night after he was apparently struck by lightning. He was not breathing when he was discovered lying face down in a road by a woman passer-by in Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire. A 36-year-old woman suffered head injuries after a house in Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, was struck by lightning.

The worst of the weather was south of a line running across the country from Dorset to the Wash, where hot air met cooler air. London and the South East continued to bake with temperatures as high as 30C (86F) until the storm clouds gathered in early evening. By comparison, Northern Ireland and Wales experienced only 13C. Thunderclaps of 120 decibels, as loud as a jet aircraft taking off 200ft away, shook homes as the storms began at 3am. Lightning strikes devastated homes across Plymouth, Devon.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article537140.ece

[AderynCoch]

I wasn't aware of the phrase "European monsoon" until the summer of 2007 came along. I've always seen it as a light-hearted term, referring to an exaggerated return of the westerlies and the resultant high-summer washouts which many of us have experienced in recent years.

An increase in westerlies during June is normal, but a month averaging over 200% of the average rainfall (which applies to three out the previous four Julys here) isn't. That's the distinction I make between the two phrases. This year it looks more like a simple return of the westerlies than a European monsoon (touch wood - summer's not over yet!).

[damianslaw]

I enjoyed the episode last week apart from the presenters. However, I don't see why it is necessary to film the programme live outside - the audience had very little participation in the show.

This weeks episode is about sunshine, I suspect they will visit the sunniest place in the UK and are quite likely to talk about record sunny months/seasons. They may even mention gloomy skies and dull perios such as dec 1890 when london saw no sunshine, they could then talk about smog.

They will do some feature on the impact of the sun for our weather, who knows they may even mention solar sunspot activity and that we are in a low period of activity, though this may be too advanced.

I hope next week is about cold weather and snow, but I have a feeling they are going to talk about wind instead.

[ZONE 51]

Just a Reminder! B)

[Paul Sherman]

Yep tonights is from London and is about Sunshine Lets hope it is sunny for the Outside Broadcast.

Had a look into next weeks offering and it is on Wind and Storms and comes from Stirling Castle.

Thankfully it looks like they have cut out the Storm Chase Bust from 27th June :lol:

The running schedule looks like a chat between Micky the Fish, Bill Giles and Mr Kettle (Although that should say Kettley) as the spelling and grammar on the BBC Site is dreadful!

2 left then for us to get our teeth into

[Coast]

Well yet again it was an entertaining show and one for weather fans and those just slightly interested. I think they have been pinching a few ideas from Netweather though! :lol: