1934

1934 was noted for a very dry February, and the mildest December of the century. The period March 1933 to February 1934 was the driest 12 month on record for Scotland, with an average of 1029 mm.

January. Largely sunny and mild in the west.

February. An exceptionally dry month, particularly in Northern Ireland. Almost 14C was recorded at Ricksmansworth on the 16th, but there was a cold northerly spell from the 26th on.

March. Unsettled and cool. The lowest temperature of the year happened on the very late date of 14 March: -12.2C at Braemar.

April. Generally dull and unsettled, and very wet in the NE. It reached 26C at Cambridge on the 15th.

May. Mostly warm and sunny, particularly in the south, with a notable hot spell. Unsettled up to the 9th, then briefly ver warm. It was 28C at Farnborough on the 12th. It became much cooler on 13th as winds swung to the NW. The month was unsettled and windy in the north. Very dry in the south, wet in the NW of England.

June. Dry and warm. Anticyclonic until the 23rd. 32C at Greenwich on the 17th. On the 23rd and 24th there were 17.3 and 17.4 hours of sunshine at Lerwick.

July. Hot and sunny start. Kew recorded 131 hours of sunshine in the first ten days. There was a notable warm spell between the 4th and 12th, with 9 consecutive days over 27C (80F) at Nottingham. Some places reacher 32C, and it was even 31C at Perth in Scotland. The highest temperature was 33.3C at Attenborough (Notts.) on the 11th. 116 mm of rain in 100 minutes fell at West Wickham (London) on the 22nd.

August. Unsettled. Rickmansworth had an air minimum of -0.6C (31F)  on the night of the 30-31st - although the earliest date for a more central London location for the first air frost is late September. (I am counting a frost in the south in August as early for the next winter rather than late for the last!)

September. Generally warm and sunny, particularly in the SE. It was a wet month in most of Scotland. There was a thunderstorm on the 15th, with 32 mm of rain in 10 minutes at Trowbridge.

October. Mild and dull, but turning cold at the end of the month. Snow is rare in October, but there were snow showers in the Midlands on the 31st. 5 cm at Belvoir Castle in Leics., and a light covering in parts of the Chilterns. This is the last time there was snow lying in southern England in October. The maximum at Bellingham (Northumberland) on the 31st was less than 1C (33F in old money), and in places it was the coldest day of the year. This was the last time Northern Ireland saw any October snow before 2008.

November. Unsettled first half then becoming dull and dry. There was thick fog widespread around the 20th. Visibility was down to ten yards in Norfolk, and seven in the Lake District, and apparently down to six yards in North London and Kent.

December. The warmest this century (8.1). At Falmouth the the lowest temperature was 5C; at Wick, the average was close to that of the typical May.