Favourite and least favourite springs

[Weather Enthusiast91]

As nice as spring 2020 was, I did get a little bored after a while; as I do with any kind of weather that dominates for weeks on end. I like a varied spring with a good mix of sunshine and showers accompanied by a warm up as the season progresses. 

If given the choice out of 2020 and 2021 though, I would choose 2020.

Edited March 19, 2023 by Weather Enthusiast91

[Snowyowl9]

Another great spring of big contrasts..

From winter with snow in april to summer with huge thunderstorms early may..

[SummerShower]

19 minutes ago, Snowyowl9 said:

Another great spring of big contrasts..

From winter with snow in april to summer with huge thunderstorms early may..

This also happened in 1998 and 2000, both had cold periods with some snow in the April's, and the Mays had very warm periods with thunder in many areas.   2000 was probably similar to 2008 though in that the 2nd half wasn't as good as the first.

[Thundery wintry showers]

I'd still have to say my favourite spring was that of 1995 with its contrasting episodes and switch-arounds.  Here's a selection of charts from that spring to illustrate the point:

 

I also agree with Weather-history regarding May 1997, it was particularly varied and it felt like we got some of almost everything.  April 1997 let that spring as a whole down for me though because, while warm and very dry, it wasn't particularly sunny in Tyneside.

Spring 2020 was of course remarkable for being by far the sunniest on record, but it loses points for lack of variety.  Other standouts include 2003, 2008, 2018.  I quite enjoyed 2021 as well.

Least favourite?  There are several contenders but it's hard to see further than 1996 really, in view of how relentlessly cold, grey and drizzly that March was in particular.

Edited March 20, 2023 by Thundery wintry showers

[feb1991blizzard]

1987, 2013. 2016.

[Summer18]

2018 was my personal favourite, a season that had it all. It started very cold of course In March with deep snow and freezing temperatures. April was then a transitional month with a cold start and a hot end (with a thunderstorm). May was an all time great month for sun and warmth.

2011 would be up there too because the April was basically a summer month in spring. I have no recollection of March that year whatsoever though. 

I personally enjoyed April 2021, even though it was notably cold the sun still felt warm and there was plenty of it. The May was a complete shocker but we did have some decent storms.

2020 I had the best tan I have ever had in the UK (for obvious reasons!)

2013 was interesting from a weather point of view but the cold and dullness got so tiresome. The growth was so late that year that the landscape was still a winter wasteland going well into May. 

I’d probably say my least favourite was 2012, the warmth came way too early at the end of March. That led onto April being cold and a complete washout which we were stuck with all summer. 
 

Edited March 21, 2023 by Summer18

[Scorcher]

15 hours ago, Snowyowl9 said:

Another great spring of big contrasts..

From winter with snow in april to summer with huge thunderstorms early may..

Spring 2008 was awful until May though- almost uniformly chilly. The trees hardly had any leaves at the beginning of May. It would be near the bottom of my list for desirable springs although the first half of May was fantastic.

 

I agree with TWS that 1995 was a very interesting spring although I was a bit too young to remember it in detail. I do recall the VE Day celebrations on the playground at school in early May on what seemed like a really scorching day (it was probably only mid 20s but felt hotter in the blazing sunshine).

 

2018 was a very interesting one with the exceptional cold in March followed by that remarkable flip in mid April with record breaking heat and then an extremely dry and sunny May.

 

I have fond memories of 2003- the warm, sunny March and the exceptional hot spell in mid April. 

 

I also enjoyed spring 2020 a lot for the sunshine- I would welcome another incredibly sunny spring like that again as I think this time of year is when people need the sunshine the most.

[Summer8906]

For me a "favourite" spring would actually not be warm and sunny non-stop, but would also, in addition to being sunny and dry, feature several northerly outbreaks and at least one incidence of lying snow. Trouble is, years which feature both are hard to find...

There is only one I can think of, and that is 1995 (which others have also mentioned). All three months drier and sunnier than average, but with a cold northwesterly (with lying snow in parts of the south) in early March and a further northerly plunge in mid-April.

After that, we'll have to go with the warm, sunny ones I think, so candidates where all three months were good are surprisingly few, but include 1990, 1997, and 2009. These would thus make up a top 5, so in order, I would say:

1. 1995

2. 1997

3. 2009

4. 1990

5. 2011 (two out of three months good, but so-so May)

As for worst spring, thankfully bad springs are not that common.

The three worst springs I have some memories of include 1981, 1983 and 1986. For all three my memories are a bit vague, but, with some help from the wetterzentrale archives, I will say

1. 1983 (March not so bad, dry/mild becoming cold/northerly; April starting cold northerly, then cyclonic, with fine spell mid month, then second half of spring possibly the worst on record for modern times with near stationary low pressure constantly over the UK)

2. 1986 (could have been in first place had it not been for the snowfall on March 1)

3. 1981 (March and May amongst the worst on record, but April, conversely, amongst the most interesting...)

with the other two being

4. 1994 (constantly changeable, but individual spells were not quite as bad as what the above three delivered. Worst months March and May; April often OK).

5. 2012 (the good March cancelled out by the diabolical April and disappointing May)

An absolute spring from hell would combine March 2023 with April and May 1983. Not something I hope I ever have to live through...

Edited March 21, 2023 by Summer8906

[SunSean]

I don't have a massive recollection of anything in the distant past but I do remember quite a few really good recent Springs or Spring months. 

The best ones probably being-

2020- Absolute Sunfest. The best Spring weather I have ever experienced.

2018- Didn't enjoy the cold March but at least it was interesting & May was phenomenal.

2017 & 2019- All 3 months had some really nice, sunny periods of weather and warmth.

2011- A stunning April and the other 2 months were fine enough.

The worst ones being- 

2013- Rubbish ice cold March, nothing too special about the other 2 months overall.

2008- One good spell in early May was the only real highlight.

2023- Still got 2 months to go but if things keep going as terrible as March 2023, this will be the worst Spring by a country mile. I mark March 2023 as the worst Spring month I have ever experienced. Absolutely no sunshine whatsoever.

[cheeky_monkey]

On 21/03/2023 at 10:33, Summer8906 said:

For me a "favourite" spring would actually not be warm and sunny non-stop, but would also, in addition to being sunny and dry, feature several northerly outbreaks and at least one incidence of lying snow. Trouble is, years which feature both are hard to find...

There is only one I can think of, and that is 1995 (which others have also mentioned). All three months drier and sunnier than average, but with a cold northwesterly (with lying snow in parts of the south) in early March and a further northerly plunge in mid-April.

After that, we'll have to go with the warm, sunny ones I think, so candidates where all three months were good are surprisingly few, but include 1990, 1997, and 2009. These would thus make up a top 5, so in order, I would say:

1. 1995

2. 1997

3. 2009

4. 1990

5. 2011 (two out of three months good, but so-so May)

As for worst spring, thankfully bad springs are not that common.

The three worst springs I have some memories of include 1981, 1983 and 1986. For all three my memories are a bit vague, but, with some help from the wetterzentrale archives, I will say

1. 1983 (March not so bad, dry/mild becoming cold/northerly; April starting cold northerly, then cyclonic, with fine spell mid month, then second half of spring possibly the worst on record for modern times with near stationary low pressure constantly over the UK)

2. 1986 (could have been in first place had it not been for the snowfall on March 1)

3. 1981 (March and May amongst the worst on record, but April, conversely, amongst the most interesting...)

with the other two being

4. 1994 (constantly changeable, but individual spells were not quite as bad as what the above three delivered. Worst months March and May; April often OK).

5. 2012 (the good March cancelled out by the diabolical April and disappointing May)

An absolute spring from hell would combine March 2023 with April and May 1983. Not something I hope I ever have to live through...

cant really argue with your choices for best and worst springs..1995 is definitely up there..April 1997 was remarkably sunny and dry..May 1990 is the best May i have experienced in my lifetime a real bobby dazzler of a month ..2009 spring was my last spring so do speak living my life in the UK but it doesn't stand out at all in my memory..1983 as i recall was one of the wettest springs of record at the time esp May..its doesn't quite beat 1986 for me as the worst spring as summer 1983 was glorious ..only remember April 1981 as a real topsy turvy month

[al78]

On 21/03/2023 at 16:33, Summer8906 said:

An absolute spring from hell would combine March 2023 with April and May 1983. Not something I hope I ever have to live through...

March 2023

April 2012

There was a May where temperatures failed to rise above single digits in places with continuous rain on the second bank holiday weekend, can't remember the year though. Other than that, May 1996 where it struggled to get above 10C during the day because of a Scandi block which had hung around like a fart in a crowded lift bringing persistent NEly winds across the UK.

[MP-R]

2 hours ago, al78 said:

March 2023

April 2012

There was a May where temperatures failed to rise above single digits in places with continuous rain on the second bank holiday weekend, can't remember the year though. Other than that, May 1996 where it struggled to get above 10C during the day because of a Scandi block which had hung around like a fart in a crowded lift bringing persistent NEly winds across the UK.

Almost certainly this turdfest: 

  

Although a year later wasn't much better...

 

[richie3846]

8 minutes ago, MP-R said:

Almost certainly this turdfest: 

  

Although a year later wasn't much better...

 

May 21 wasn't much better either. Took till June for many trees to fully leaf.

 

On 22/03/2023 at 11:25, SunSean said:

I don't have a massive recollection of anything in the distant past but I do remember quite a few really good recent Springs or Spring months. 

The best ones probably being-

2020- Absolute Sunfest. The best Spring weather I have ever experienced.

2018- Didn't enjoy the cold March but at least it was interesting & May was phenomenal.

2017 & 2019- All 3 months had some really nice, sunny periods of weather and warmth.

2011- A stunning April and the other 2 months were fine enough.

The worst ones being- 

2013- Rubbish ice cold March, nothing too special about the other 2 months overall.

2008- One good spell in early May was the only real highlight.

2023- Still got 2 months to go but if things keep going as terrible as March 2023, this will be the worst Spring by a country mile. I mark March 2023 as the worst Spring month I have ever experienced. Absolutely no sunshine whatsoever.

2020 was the sunniest season on record, remarkable seeing as summer has the most daylight hours

[al78]

14 minutes ago, MP-R said:

Almost certainly this turdfest: 

  

Although a year later wasn't much better...

 

That is probably it. I was doing a bit of touristy stuff near the Brecon Beacons, visiting remenants of old mining paraphenalia at altitude, it felt literally like the middle of January and I was woefully underdressed. I hadn't expected it to be that cold a couple of days from the start of the meteorological summer.

[Summer8906]

On 23/03/2023 at 20:37, al78 said:

March 2023

April 2012

There was a May where temperatures failed to rise above single digits in places with continuous rain on the second bank holiday weekend, can't remember the year though. Other than that, May 1996 where it struggled to get above 10C during the day because of a Scandi block which had hung around like a fart in a crowded lift bringing persistent NEly winds across the UK.

May 1996 is a little unfairly maligned IMO but it might be due to my location during that month, in south/southwest England, which was protected from the NE-ly winds.

The weather from about the 3rd right through to the 16th was dry and generally bright, if cold, and some days were very sunny. I remember one day of bright, strong sunshine and a cutting NE-ly wind together, temps were perhaps in the very low teens.

The weekend of the 18th was completely appalling - I agree: the all-too-familiar setup of a low-latitude Atlantic low running into a NEly, producing exceptionally dull, cold and wet weather, then unseasonable gales as the low moved northwards. It then stayed poor until the 29th with unseasonable Atlantic domination though the final two days were dry and (finally) warm. We did get lucky with the late May bank holiday, despite the generally poor weather: both the Saturday and Monday happened to coincide with ridges of high pressure.

Edited March 25, 2023 by Summer8906

[Summer8906]

On 23/03/2023 at 23:19, MP-R said:

 

Although a year later wasn't much better...

 

An unusual inverse north-south split that one (late May 2008). I was lucky to spend the bank holiday in the Lake District where it was dry and very sunny - but by all accounts appallingly bad back home, following around two weeks of warm, sunny weather.

From the Lake District I could see the mass of Ci and Cs to the south indicating the edge what the south was having to endure. We travelled south into it late on the Monday, but by that time it had fragmented somewhat into isolated thundery showers, IIRC.

Edited March 25, 2023 by Summer8906

[MP-R]

2 hours ago, Summer8906 said:

An unusual inverse north-south split that one (late May 2008). I was lucky to spend the bank holiday in the Lake District where it was dry and very sunny - but by all accounts appallingly bad back home, following around two weeks of warm, sunny weather.

From the Lake District I could see the mass of Ci and Cs to the south indicating the edge what the south was having to endure. We travelled south into it late on the Monday, but by that time it had fragmented somewhat into isolated thundery showers, IIRC.

The north was definitely the place to be in May 2008. Other than the warm spell earlier in the month, it was no great shakes here after that. In fact, from the 15th onwards it was largely poor, although not without thundery interest. The cool cloudy northeasterly spell from the 15th to the 20th was particularly arduous.

[Summer8906]

7 hours ago, MP-R said:

The north was definitely the place to be in May 2008. Other than the warm spell earlier in the month, it was no great shakes here after that. In fact, from the 15th onwards it was largely poor, although not without thundery interest. The cool cloudy northeasterly spell from the 15th to the 20th was particularly arduous.

Here, further east, it was rather better.

From memory: the warm weather began on around the 6th and was maintained until around the 15th. There was then a forecast of thundery rain that night but it failed to materialise, but the 16th and 17th were indeed cool and cloudy. However, here the weather then improved again and the 18th through to the 23rd was generally sunny again and increasingly warm, if I remember right. The final week was poor or very poor.

So an above-average month here.

[MP-R]

51 minutes ago, Summer8906 said:

Here, further east, it was rather better.

From memory: the warm weather began on around the 6th and was maintained until around the 15th. There was then a forecast of thundery rain that night but it failed to materialise, but the 16th and 17th were indeed cool and cloudy. However, here the weather then improved again and the 18th through to the 23rd was generally sunny again and increasingly warm, if I remember right. The final week was poor or very poor.

So an above-average month here.

Sounds like you got lucky there. After the 14th, only the 24th and 31st had more than 3 hours of sunshine here. Fortunes did change here into June, which ended up being sunnier and much drier overall. 

[Summer8906]

13 hours ago, MP-R said:

Sounds like you got lucky there. After the 14th, only the 24th and 31st had more than 3 hours of sunshine here. Fortunes did change here into June, which ended up being sunnier and much drier overall. 

Yes, June 2008 is a forgotten good summer month. Mostly people remember the bad August, but June was very frequently sunny, if not especially warm.