The Wrong Kind of Snow: How the Weather Made Britain

(Paperback)

---

Publishing Details

Classifications

Physical Properties

Description

It is a fact universally acknowledged that the British are obsessed with the weather. This is not surprising as no country in the world has such unpredictable weather, with such power to rule people's lives. THE WRONG KIND OF SNOW is the complete daily companion to this national phenomenon. From the Spanish Armada to the invention of the windscreen wiper, each of the 365 entries beautifully illustrates a day in the weird and wonderful history of the British and their weather.

31 January: The Big Freeze of 1963 brings the FA Cup competition to a halt: every football pitch in Britain is frozen: the third round takes 66 days to complete: the Pools Panel is formed as a result.

9 February: British Rail blames the 'Wrong Kind of Snow'. It was a journalist's phrase, but on this day in 1991 it stuck to the beleagured BR like flesh to ice.

15 July: The exceptionally hot and steamy summer of 1858 caused the Great Stink of London, resulting in the building of London's sewage system, still in use today. On the same day in 1930, rainfall in Yorkshire was so heavy that the Whitby lifeboat makes a rescue two miles inland.

10 September: A violent storm rather than British sea power defeats the Spanish Armada in 1588. Had the weather held and the fleet reached home, it would have been hailed as a Spanish triumph. Four centuries later, bad light and rain stop play at the Oval . . .

And much much more.

Reviews

'This year's Eats, Shoots and Leaves"' -- Guardian ' ***** Smart and well-researched' -- Time Out 'Wonderful ... full of fascination and amusement' -- Alan Titchmarsh, The Alan Titchmarsh Show 'A meteorological feast for every day of the year' -- Good Book Guide 'Well written and funny ... a book you can give to almost anyone' -- Elle 'Bags of charm' -- The Sunday Times 'Brilliant idea' -- Daily Mail

Author Bio

Rob Penn and Antony Woodward are journalists and have spent many hours trying to predict the weather, Antony as a pilot and Rob on a round the world bicycle ride.