November 1985

[Summer8906]

Does anyone remember much of this?

Even though the mid 80s is generally a period which I remember well, I have surprisingly few recollections of October and November 1985, as well as January 1986.

Apparently it was a cold one, perhaps on a par with 1993.

I may be imagining this, but I have the feeling there was heavy lying snow in the south on one occasion (speaking of the W Sussex / Surrey / Hampshire border area). Can anyone confirm, or deny this? It may be a false memory brought on by reading the Monthly Weather Report for the month.

I recall the monthly weather reports describing the month as a series of northerly plunges with short milder interludes. At the end of the month, and very like 1993, milder air came in for good - until the end of January.

Edited October 26, 2021 by Summer8906

[damianslaw]

4 hours ago, Summer8906 said:

Does anyone remember much of this?

Even though the mid 80s is generally a period which I remember well, I have surprisingly few recollections of October and November 1985, as well as January 1986.

Apparently it was a cold one, perhaps on a par with 1993.

I may be imagining this, but I have the feeling there was heavy lying snow in the south on one occasion (speaking of the W Sussex / Surrey / Hampshire border area). Can anyone confirm, or deny this? It may be a false memory brought on by reading the Monthly Weather Report for the month.

I recall the monthly weather reports describing the month as a series of northerly plunges with short milder interludes. At the end of the month, and very like 1993, milder air came in for good - until the end of January.

I was 7 and have little memory.. perhaps a cold Bonfire Night.. the reports and stats say it was a cold and wintry month. Second half brought very low temps and widespread snowfall. 

[hillbilly]

I remember it well.Here in the Pennines it was cold with a few dustings of snow as well as a good covering midmonth and a heavier fall in the last week.There are 12 air frosts recorded at my nearest met office station in Bradford,only 1993 and 1996 have matched it but no other November has been so cold,you have to go back 102 years to 1919 to find one colder.I remember having a motorbike and had some rubbish gloves and there were several occasions i had to stop and warm up my hands,it certainly makes you cry when they start to warm up!

[Durham Weather]

I did the Memorial service on Great Gable in the Lakes in Nov 1985. It was very snowy on the tops, about 6” deep and bitterly cold. My beer froze in my rucsac.

[Weather-history]

23 hours ago, Summer8906 said:

Does anyone remember much of this?

Even though the mid 80s is generally a period which I remember well, I have surprisingly few recollections of October and November 1985, as well as January 1986.

Apparently it was a cold one, perhaps on a par with 1993.

I may be imagining this, but I have the feeling there was heavy lying snow in the south on one occasion (speaking of the W Sussex / Surrey / Hampshire border area). Can anyone confirm, or deny this? It may be a false memory brought on by reading the Monthly Weather Report for the month.

I recall the monthly weather reports describing the month as a series of northerly plunges with short milder interludes. At the end of the month, and very like 1993, milder air came in for good - until the end of January.

 

[Summer8906]

1 hour ago, Weather-history said:

 

Thanks, it appears that 1985 and 1993 were very much on their own in recent history.

[Thundery wintry showers]

I just checked the stats for Waddington near Lincoln and the end of November 1985 was very snowy around these parts, a fall of 7cm for the morning of 27 November and then 4 consecutive mornings with lying snow, although most of it had melted by the 30th, presumably because of the milder air coming in.  It was the coldest November in a record from 1949, just beating 1965 and 1993.

Lancaster had three days of lying snow from that spell as well, presumably due to snow showers moving in off the Irish Sea in the north-westerly on the 27th and 28th.  There were also exceptionally low temperatures in parts of Scotland.  The switch-around from cold to warm around the turn of the month was particularly extreme.  It was also a very sunny month in many parts of the country.  However, I was too young to have any memories of it.

Edited October 27, 2021 by Thundery wintry showers

[HafrenLMP1]

I started an evening paper round early September, and recall most of the time just wearing a shirt & maybe a jumper if it was cool. However, by November, I started a morning round as well. I'm sure we had delays in receiving the papers due to the 'wintry weather'. I also couldn't use my bicycle all the time due to the weather during that period. I also recall the cold mornings, with frost, and cold hands whilst delivering the papers.....

[Summer8906]

Wonder if 1985 would be rated the most interesting autumn by many / most?

I remember September being unusually warm and sunny, recall little about October (though have heard of the 29C on the first day of the month, something I surprisingly do not remember at all - though it was a weekday which wouldn't have helped) but gather it was largely warm and fine - and then we had this November.

Certainly some compensation for what was a very poor summer, with July the only half-decent month - and a rather cold and changeable spring.

This was also the time of Halley's Comet - I didn't try looking it for myself (I developed an interest in astronomy, but rather later than this) though heard that many said the skies were unusually cloudy so it was hard to find. This, however, would be at odds with the character of November 1985 described here.

Edited October 29, 2021 by Summer8906

[Weather-history]

4 minutes ago, Summer8906 said:

 

This was also the time of Halley's Comet - I didn't try looking it for myself (I developed an interest in astronomy, but rather later than this) though heard that many said the skies were unusually cloudy so it was hard to find. This, however, would be at odds with the character of November 1985 described here.

Worst return of Halley's comet as seen from Earth for a couple thousands of years. Very unlucky. Wasn't  a brilliant object at best compared to past returns. Comet Neowise last year was brighter. I don't think you could see it from the UK after November 1985 anyway 

Remember watching the live BBC coverage of the Giotto probe's approach to the nucleus of Halley's in March 1986

[Thundery wintry showers]

What stands out for me about September & October 1985 was the exceptionally warm southerly centred on 1 October, which was beaten only in 2011.  In some parts of the country 1 October was the warmest day of the year.  I get an impression that September 1985 was a NW-SE split month: at Waddington it was warm and dry but with just average sunshine, and the north-west was dull and wet.  October 1985 was more widely both drier and sunnier than average - indeed in the Met Office's UK rainfall series only October 2016 has subsequently been drier.

I'd certainly say 1985 stands out as an autumn with more than its fair share of noteworthy weather events, particularly from the back end of September onwards.

Edited October 29, 2021 by Thundery wintry showers

[damianslaw]

1 hour ago, HafrenLMP1 said:

I started an evening paper round early September, and recall most of the time just wearing a shirt & maybe a jumper if it was cool. However, by November, I started a morning round as well. I'm sure we had delays in receiving the papers due to the 'wintry weather'. I also couldn't use my bicycle all the time due to the weather during that period. I also recall the cold mornings, with frost, and cold hands whilst delivering the papers.....

I delivered papers through the Autumn of 1992 remember thinking how cold it was.. many a morning with freezing hands and always wet. 

[Summer8906]

1 hour ago, Weather-history said:

Worst return of Halley's comet as seen from Earth for a couple thousands of years. Very unlucky. Wasn't  a brilliant object at best compared to past returns. Comet Neowise last year was brighter. I don't think you could see it from the UK after November 1985 anyway 

Remember watching the live BBC coverage of the Giotto probe's approach to the nucleus of Halley's in March 1986

I do remember comets Hyakutake (sp?) and Hale-Bopp in the nineties, I think the former was spring 1996 and the latter spring 1997. Indeed I am fairly sure there was a night in early April 1996 when there was a lunar eclipse at the same time - going back to weather, early April 1996 was sunny with cold nights. Both of these were reasonably bright and remain the only comets I have seen to this date. Wonder how Halley's comet (1985) compared to these?

Edited October 29, 2021 by Summer8906

[hillbilly]

20 hours ago, Summer8906 said:

I do remember comets Hyakutake (sp?) and Hale-Bopp in the nineties, I think the former was spring 1996 and the latter spring 1997. Indeed I am fairly sure there was a night in early April 1996 when there was a lunar eclipse at the same time - going back to weather, early April 1996 was sunny with cold nights. Both of these were reasonably bright and remain the only comets I have seen to this date. Wonder how Halley's comet (1985) compared to these?

As far as i am aware we are priveleged to have witnessed Hale-Bopp as it is one of the brightest and biggest comets ever to be witnessed by man,you couldnt miss it whereas something like Halleys was miniscule in comparison.

 

[Methuselah]

12 minutes ago, hillbilly said:

As far as i am aware we are priveleged to have witnessed Hale-Bopp as it is one of the brightest and biggest comets ever to be witnessed by man,you couldnt miss it whereas something like Halleys was miniscule in comparison.

 

I was staying in a Highland glen back then, and those two comets were spectacular!