Right, a little bit of nostalgia as we take you back 37 years to 1981 and it's coming towards the end of April. Bucks Fizz were number one in the charts with Making Your Mind Up and we were all wearing clothes which make us yelp when we see old pictures of us in them.
Those of us watching Dr Who might remember that Tom Baker made his final appearance whilst Peter Davison made his debut, whilst in comedy it was just a couple of months until the first episode of Only Fools and Horses was screened. Thanks to wiki for that useless information, but you get the idea.
Meanwhile, in the weather world, the month was shaping up to be a little bit different. It all started on the 18th, when high pressure building to the South of Iceland brought colder Northerly winds across much of the UK behind a cold front. A complex low in the meantime moved across Ireland and into Wales and the Midlands with some snow on the Northern edge of the system. On the 24th snow spread East into Northern Ireland and the Isle of Man. On the 25th and 26th almost continuous snow fell across much of Wales, the Midlands, East and Southwest England as the low pressure system developed.
Between 15-30cm of snow fell across Northern Ireland, Wales and Southern England, with 40-60cm across parts of the Southern Uplands and Pennines where drifts of up to 6m in places were recorded thanks to the gale to severe gale force Northeasterly winds.
It was the most severe April blizzard across the UK since 1908 and led to significant disruption across the UK. As to what we were listening to and watching on the telly in 1908? We're not sure, but it just serves to remind what a complex and varied month of weather April can deliver across the UK if the conditions are right, even though the hairstyles are wrong.
METEOROLOGIST : MAKINGMYMINDUP
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