Memories of 1984

[Sunny76]

Was quite young then, but remember late May being thundery in London, but I might be getting this mixed up with 1985. The stats show May 84 being cold and dull, which doesn’t usually produce thunderstorms.

The summer holidays were quite hot and sunny at times. Was down in the Isle of Wight in August, and most of the days were warm and sunny. 
 

We just don’t seem to be able to get Augusts like that anymore.

Don’t remember much else. 

[hillbilly]

A fantastic year.Lots of snow in Winter,particularly the huge dumping we got in the 3rd week of January,i remember one of the lads from school who said he had lots of snow at his house only to be left speechless when he came to visit at the weekend at out remote hilltop farm to help us dig out the lane.A typical cold 80s spring wich was very dry in these parts which led to a severe water shortage when the hot summer came.Yes what a summer,one of my favourites,the best of the 80s,slightly better than 1989 and only beaten by 1995 and on a par with 2018.Some memorable thunderstorms in July,i remember haymaking one night and the heavens opened just as we got our last load of hay in the barn,about the same time as the one that started the fire at York Minster.All 3 Summer months were great here especially August which was probably pipped by 1995 and on par with 1997 which led to drought conditions here and standpipes on the streets even though they were not used.

[damianslaw]

14 minutes ago, hillbilly said:

A fantastic year.Lots of snow in Winter,particularly the huge dumping we got in the 3rd week of January,i remember one of the lads from school who said he had lots of snow at his house only to be left speechless when he came to visit at the weekend at out remote hilltop farm to help us dig out the lane.A typical cold 80s spring wich was very dry in these parts which led to a severe water shortage when the hot summer came.Yes what a summer,one of my favourites,the best of the 80s,slightly better than 1989 and only beaten by 1995 and on a par with 2018.Some memorable thunderstorms in July,i remember haymaking one night and the heavens opened just as we got our last load of hay in the barn,about the same time as the one that started the fire at York Minster.All 3 Summer months were great here especially August which was probably pipped by 1995 and on par with 1997 which led to drought conditions here and standpipes on the streets even though they were not used.

Vague memories only. Jan 84 was very snowy here second half. The spring summer period was very dry and often very warm. Pictures of scorched brown park.. only other time this has happened was summer 95.

Don't think the autumn and December was anything special. 

[A Face like Thunder]

Ref the dry spring, the south east of England missed out big time during the Spring Bank Holiday weekend c/o a stationary low pressure system, with continuous rainfall setting some sort of record which had lasted from 1903. We were camping over the weekend and it was awful, with the sun only making an appearance on the last (Tuesday) afternoon. What made it worse was that the rest of the country was enjoying blue skies and dry conditions. A bit like the floods of September 1968 but with less overall rainfall.

Late May was v thundery in the south east in 1985 rather than 1984.

I recall the summer of 1984 being v nice, but possibly not as hot as 1983. The two summers of 1983 and 1984 were great, a pity about what followed in 1985!   

Edited March 24, 2022 by A Face like Thunder

[damianslaw]

3 hours ago, A Face like Thunder said:

Ref the dry spring, the south east of England missed out big time during the Spring Bank Holiday weekend c/o a stationary low pressure system, with continuous rainfall setting some sort of record which had lasted from 1903. We were camping over the weekend and it was awful, with the sun only making an appearance on the last (Tuesday) afternoon. What made it worse was that the rest of the country was enjoying blue skies and dry conditions. A bit like the floods of September 1968 but with less overall rainfall.

Late May was v thundery in the south east in 1985 rather than 1984.

I recall the summer of 1984 being v nice, but possibly not as hot as 1983. The two summers of 1983 and 1984 were great, a pity about what followed in 1985!   

Good summers came in twos..

75-76, 83-84, 89-90, then a 3.. 94-96, a 4.. 03-06.. 

[Sunny76]

1 hour ago, damianslaw said:

Good summers came in twos..

75-76, 83-84, 89-90, then a 3.. 94-96, a 4.. 03-06.. 

I disagree with the 94-96 and 00s comparisons.

I only rate 94/95 and 2003/06 as decent.

96, 2004, and 05 all contained poor or mediocre summer months.

[North-Easterly Blast]

49 minutes ago, Sunny76 said:

I disagree with the 94-96 and 00s comparisons.

I only rate 94/95 and 2003/06 as decent.

96, 2004, and 05 all contained poor or mediocre summer months.

Summer 2004 was a fairly warm but wet summer - especially August - but summer 2005 was a bit drier and more settled as well as being on the warm side.  Summer 1996 was a fairly dry and often settled though at 14.4, 16.5 and 16.5, the CETs were nothing particularly warm, just fairly average to slightly above.

[damianslaw]

7 minutes ago, North-Easterly Blast said:

Summer 2004 was a fairly warm but wet summer - especially August - but summer 2005 was a bit drier and more settled as well as being on the warm side.  Summer 1996 was a fairly dry and often settled though at 14.4, 16.5 and 16.5, the CETs were nothing particularly warm, just fairly average to slightly above.

Overall summers 96, 04 and 05 in comparison to 92-93, 97-02 and 07-12 were quite good hence the grouping but yes not on a par with 94-95 03-06 but a whole lot better than the ones mentioned.. just my perspective. For consistency I should group 91 with 89-90 as well despite the poor June, July and August cancelled out the poor start. 

Edited March 24, 2022 by damianslaw

[Norrance]

My memories of 1984 are dominated by the extreme wintry spell in January and early February. 60 cms of snow in my home area in Perthshire with temps down to -20C and around 30 cms even here nearer the East coast from a PM source as depressions tracked through the central parts of the UK. The best PM sourced snow in my lifetime. It was however a Wintry spell that particularly hit the Northern half of the UK.

From Trevor Harley weather "It was very cold in Scotland: there was a minimum of -23.6C at Grantown-on-Spey on the morning of the 20th, and -20.6C at Aviemore, followed by a maximum of only -8C at Tummel Bridge the next day. More snow in the north on the 21st. On the 23rd snow lay 65 cm deep in parts of Scotland, with many places cut off. Snow lay for 30 days of the month at Kindrogan, 20 days at Glasgow and Edinburgh, but only 6 at Manchester , and just one in London. Another tornado, with large hail, hit Teignmouth on the 26th. It was milder than average in the south."

A very warm and sunny April and a decent Summer followed but nothing else memorable for me.

[cheeky_monkey]

8 hours ago, damianslaw said:

Good summers came in twos..

75-76, 83-84, 89-90, then a 3.. 94-96, a 4.. 03-06.. 

96 was a pretty average summer 94 had a hot July..2004 was pretty average also and 2005 albeit had nice hot spell in June 

[Weather-history]

8 hours ago, damianslaw said:

Good summers 

a 4.. 03-06.. 

I wouldn't call 2004, a good summer. Mid June to mid July was poor and August was very wet.

[Sunny76]

I think November that year had a couple of 21c days, which at the time would have been a record. 
 

We had to wait until 1994, until temps were just as mild in the early part of the month. 

[Sunny76]

26 minutes ago, Weather-history said:

I wouldn't call 2004, a good summer. Mid June to mid July was poor and August was very wet.

That’s what I remember most about 04. It was warm and humid for a time in August, with an overnight storm in London, but the middle part of the summer was quite cool, and at the time, it was the poorest since the 1980s.

[Thundery wintry showers]

1984 was the year I was born, so I don't specifically remember the weather that happened, but that January has always stood out for me as a particularly exciting-sounding month, with its high frequency of thunder as well as being snowy from the north Midlands northwards.  At Waddington thundersnow was reported twice during the month (on the 3rd and 26th), also with thunder accompanying sleet on the 14th, and the period 21st-23rd was particularly snowy, in a synoptic setup quite similar to that of 5-7 February 1996.  April 1984 stands out for its high sunshine totals, warm days and cold nights, and July & August for generally warm sunny weather.  September to December 1984 don't stand out for me as particularly interesting looking months.  The autumn was very wet in some parts of the country.

Edited March 25, 2022 by Thundery wintry showers

[iand61]

My memories are a cold and snowy winter leading into a dry spring with a frequent nagging easterly breeze which made it cold at times and then mainly dry sunny and warm across the summer months.

My missus and myself started going out together around late spring and the summer seemed to be night after night of going for a drive and maybe a calling at a pub or just for a walk when we fancied a change.

good times with plenty of way of money and little in the way of ties and Frankie Goes to Hollywood at number one for what seemed like months

sorry that last bit wasn’t enjoyable

 

[Weather-history]

From the Liverpool Echo on the worst gale of 1984, January 13th

From the Telegraph

From the Evening Chronicle

 

 

[damianslaw]

A little too young to remember, turned 6 in May. There are photos from the summer probably August of brown grass in our local park. Takes alot for that to happen so can only assume it was a very dry warm summer here. Yes the stats back it up.

Jan was exceptionally snowy here, over foot and half of lying snow towards end of the month. Unusually cold polar maritime air. Feb was quite cold. Latter part of the year rather non description, quite wet. Dec 84 average. 

[Sunny76]

On 25/03/2022 at 15:31, iand61 said:

My memories are a cold and snowy winter leading into a dry spring with a frequent nagging easterly breeze which made it cold at times and then mainly dry sunny and warm across the summer months.

My missus and myself started going out together around late spring and the summer seemed to be night after night of going for a drive and maybe a calling at a pub or just for a walk when we fancied a change.

good times with plenty of way of money and little in the way of ties and Frankie Goes to Hollywood at number one for what seemed like months

sorry that last bit wasn’t enjoyable

 

Nothing wrong with Frankie.

Bryan Adams was much worse during the summer of 1991 lol.

[damianslaw]

2 minutes ago, Sunny76 said:

Nothing wrong with Frankie.

Bryan Adams was much worse during the summer of 1991 lol.

Off topic slightly but long runner number ones coincided with quite lengthy spells of either good or poor weather. Frankie in 84 generally a gine sunny warm period. Bryan Adams in 91, mostly good in summer period, Wet Wet Wet again a generally warm summer although wet at times, rihanna umbrella in 07 exceptionally wet! 

[iand61]

33 minutes ago, Sunny76 said:

Nothing wrong with Frankie.

Bryan Adams was much worse during the summer of 1991 lol.

I forgot how bad 1991 actually was and I don’t mean the weather

[Sunny76]

4 hours ago, iand61 said:

I forgot how bad 1991 actually was and I don’t mean the weather

The summer was quite bland if I remember. It was poorish compared to 89 and 90.

[Sunny76]

4 hours ago, damianslaw said:

Off topic slightly but long runner number ones coincided with quite lengthy spells of either good or poor weather. Frankie in 84 generally a gine sunny warm period. Bryan Adams in 91, mostly good in summer period, Wet Wet Wet again a generally warm summer although wet at times, rihanna umbrella in 07 exceptionally wet! 

Yes Wet Wet Wet was number 1 from late May I think, all the way until mid September. 
 

It’s time at the top was warm to hot periods bookmarked by cool spells in the late spring and early autumn. 

[damianslaw]

3 minutes ago, Sunny76 said:

The summer was quite bland if I remember. It was poorish compared to 89 and 90.

It was half decent but felt poor in comparison to 1989 and 1990. Overall though the school holiday period was preety good. It was let down by the very cool cloudy June. 

[Sunny76]

9 minutes ago, damianslaw said:

It was half decent but felt poor in comparison to 1989 and 1990. Overall though the school holiday period was preety good. It was let down by the very cool cloudy June. 

Yeah I remember august having some decent sunny days. June was awful that year.

Edited August 15, 2022 by Sunny76

[Weather-history]

6 hours ago, damianslaw said:

It was half decent but felt poor in comparison to 1989 and 1990. Overall though the school holiday period was preety good. It was let down by the very cool cloudy June. 

 

Interesting because for the Manchester Summer Index 1984 is ahead of 1989 and comfortably ahead of 1990

1984 271

1989 262

1990 229

I do feel summer 1990 is overrated by a lot of people. June 1990 was poor and I think the August heatwave at the start has distorted people's perception, somewhat. Mid August 1990 up here was atrocious. 

June 84 rainfall at Manchester was 30mm

June 90 rainfall was 84mm

June 84 sunshine  161hrs

June 90 sunshine 105 hrs

Edited August 16, 2022 by Weather-history