When if ever did the British weather start to annoy you?
Posted by RandomTopTT@reddit | AskABrit | View on Reddit | 69 comments
Until I got a proper job I don’t remember giving the weather much thought at all. But once my free time shrank considerably, the weather and its unpredictability began to grate on me. By the end of my time in the UK I despised it. I eventually moved to one of the sunniest and driest places on earth and weather was a huge factor in that. But looking back to my younger days I literally couldn’t care less. If you hate our weather when did it dawn on you? Have you always hated it?
LittleUglyBug@reddit
I love our quirky weather. It’s like a box of chocolates.
smellyfeet25@reddit
i hate it if its cold and wet at the weekends after being nice in the week
Hello-Potion-Seller@reddit
When I developed Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD). What a fucking miserable acronym a type of depression.
terryjuicelawson@reddit
It is mostly the unpredictability, but also if there is no end in sight for periods of days and days with rain. It can entirely ruin trips away or plans.
SarkyMs@reddit
I wish it was more predictable. Can I just organise an outdoor party and need backup plans.
NoPair4650@reddit
Adding 80 mins of walking to my work commute
virusdancer@reddit
The rain annoys me as I can't use an umbrella with my rollator (and can't sit on the rollator because of the seat being wet from the rain as well) which leaves me stuck inside when it's raining.
The lack of air conditioning in the Summer annoys me as I don't do well with warmer temperatures (think I ran the heat all of five minutes this past Winter).
Both of these occurred later in my adult life due to deteriorating health conditions.
Dangerous_Hippo_6902@reddit
I remember wearing a coat in June. That ain’t right.
snapper1971@reddit
I was raised to be annoyed by the various types of rain we experience. Then I learned, as I grew up and moved away from my parents, that weather is a natural phenomenon to be enjoyed. I'm no longer annoyed by weather.
PootMcGroot@reddit
My first job required getting a bus at 6.30am.
Once you've done that a while in a British winter in the dark, weather becomes critical to your whole wellbeing.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
The winter darkness yeah. That’s pretty grim. Maybe not having to get up early before I got a job was a factor.
Toc13s@reddit
I think the dark mornings & evenings are great.
The weather is fine, just have to be prepared for it
lucylucylane@reddit
Daylight isn't weather
Toc13s@reddit
Tell that to the commenter I was replying to
TheGeordieGal@reddit
I started hating the weather at times when I was 16 and getting the bus too/from collage. I spent far too much time standing at bus stops without shelters in when it was pissing it down and the bus was cancelled or running 20 minutes late. Even worse in the winter when it was extra cold rain or sleet.
ProgressMiserable878@reddit
You need to do some research about cloud seeding and how they can make it rain when they want and then about chem trails where they block the sun from us. Those in control can change the weather when they want. It's not a secret that weather modifications are out there. Check out weathermodificationhistory.com
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Yup. Sure.
goddamnmanxhild@reddit
When I started going abroad and realised it turns out I adore hiking. I just hate hiking in the rain.
Actual-Sky-4272@reddit
Much rather British weather than constant hot and sunny. Hate too much heat, like to get wrapped up in winter, maybe slightly less short days would be nice.
Educational-Angle717@reddit
Its not the unpredictability for me its those months you get where its just 'grey' like those days where quite literally nothing happens. It can last weeks - those are the worst. At least if its a storm you can stay in or sunny sit out.
unbelievablydull82@reddit
When I got into my thirties. Before that I was pretty easy going, but as soon as middle age started to hit, I became increasingly annoyed by the weather, particularly the wind, which seems to be getting worse
Unable_Obligation_73@reddit
No such thing as bad weather just bad clothes get yourself decent wet weather gear and you can be out all day warm and dry
dwair@reddit
I think it first started to piss me off in about 1973, the point at which I started to want to play outside without getting piss wet through.
A couple of warm dry summers and snowyish winters doesn't make up for decades of incesently depressing grey and damp meh.
Alert_Mine7067@reddit
When I started in a job that entailed working outside, most of the day in all seasons
elf_n_safety@reddit
If the weather annoys you, wait 5 minutes. It’ll be a different season.
WinkyNurdo@reddit
Used to sit next to a bloke that moaned constantly about the weather. All the fucking time. His life revolved around planning the next holiday on a foreign beach — but that was all he did, went to a beach. And it was literally all he talked about. I guess we all have different ways of relaxing and regenerating.
The weather’s never really bothered me, I love the seasons and the variables. Maybe not so much when it’s 40c though. That was nightmarish. But at the time I was trapped, WFH in a tiny studio flat in London that felt like it was being super heated by liquid hot magma. I live on the coast now and enjoy the sea breeze. It’s beautiful.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
I moved away and did something about it but yeah there are loads of complainers.
likeyournamebutworse@reddit
We have weather. Thats about the extent of my thoughts on it.
evelynsmee@reddit
I used to live in Singapore. Been around Asia. Patents lived south of France. Etc.
I do not hate the British weather. Green plants, vaguely full reservoirs, not being too hot, and telling the passage of time through the changing of the seasons is a blessing not a curse.
Apart from that shit drizzle that makes my hair fluffy, and horse chestnut pollen that can fuck all the way off.
Reasonable-Key9235@reddit
I used to run a fishery, weather was vitally important. Even when things didn’t go to plan, it never bothered me. I just got on with the job. I’ve had several outdoor jobs, it’s never really been a problem. Even steel erecting, having to weld in the pouring rain or blowing a gale. It only ever bothered me if I was going for a ride on my bike, riding a 500lb motorbike in the pissing rain was a drag, especially if covering a distance. But it is what it is, no point getting annoyed about it
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
I think there are some genetics to it. Some people just generally aren’t bothered by it.
Reasonable-Key9235@reddit
No idea about that. I grew up near Brighton beach and used to fish regularly. Sometimes the bad weather was the time to fish, so I put up with it. After a while I just ignored it. I also, don’t notice the cold too much. The fishery could be completely frozen over, -6 and I’d be in a t shirt and body warmer, jeans and walking boots. I’d spend an hour breaking the ice on 2 lakes to let people pike fish. It’s rare I actually felt cold. Though, December 27th I’m in a lake in waders fitting armour cable for aerators. I gradually sank in the silt and filled the waders. I thought, well I’m soaked now so get it finished. Then, because the waders were full of water, I couldn’t get out the lake lol he lifted me out with a 360 digger lol
Budget-Raspberry-211@reddit
Came from Vancouver so weather here is a massive improvement. It's hilarious to me when a British person talks about it being grey or rainy here. Lol you have no idea haha.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
That’s interesting. On the surface of it Vancouver has remarkably similar weather to London. Just a little cooler in the winter. Would have thought there was more sun too. Looks like around 2,000 hours vs London’s 1,700.
https://weatherspark.com/compare/y/45062\~476/Comparison-of-the-Average-Weather-in-London-and-Vancouver
Budget-Raspberry-211@reddit
Look at average monthly rainfall chart. That's most of the picture. The greyness is different too.. it's subtle in London it's very dark and super rainy in Vancouver it's just very different. In London it rains a bit for a few hours a day in Vancouver it's 24 hour rain for like 2-3 months straight when it's rainy season. It's hard to even go outside. It's just very different lived experience and a chart doesn't always capture it but I've spent many years in both places.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
No I totally get it. I’m no fan of either. I’ve lived in the extremes. Northern Britain and Southern/Northern California. That makes London and climates like it all seem to be lumped together compared with the other extremes. Charts don’t tell the full story. Where I’m at now there is more rainfall in Winter than in London. But it all falls in like one or two day spurts and then you get like 7 days of glorious sun and temps around 17°-18° and there’s no way I’d consider in wetter/colder than London in winter.
SnooDonuts6494@reddit
As a Brit: Hahahahahahahahaha
Hahaha
N64Andysaurus92@reddit
In the summer when it gets too fucking hit that I can’t sleep 🫠
skibbin@reddit
Not really weather, but I remember as a kid being really sad at how early it got dark in winter.
These days I endure Canadian winters and long for the mild London winters
fyrflyeffect@reddit
Any time my sons football match gets cancelled due to waterlogged pitches (im the coach) its annoying and an admin headache
EatingCoooolo@reddit
When is not sunny. I’m a sun person.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Yeah the UK has remarkably little sunshine compared to almost anywhere else on the planet.
JensonInterceptor@reddit
Growing up in South East England the weather has never really been unpredictable
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Compared with the rest of the UK sure.
JensonInterceptor@reddit
Rains about as much as northern central France apparently
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Yes the South East has remarkably low rainfall by volume but I think that’s misleading. I think the percentage of time when the rain is falling is a better measure. The South East has rain falling at least 1/3 of days each year. Humans probably don’t care as much about volume as they do about whether or not water is falling from the sky.
PlanetSwallower@reddit
The British weather has never annoyed me per se, but now I live in Singapore I don't think I can go back to being cold again.
Own-Lecture251@reddit
It's never really bothered me except when it's one type of weather for a long spell. It doesn't really matter what type but I get a bit fed up with long spells of sun, rain, wind etc.
Bitter_Tradition_938@reddit
Also when I got a proper job. Morning: freezing. Get on the train: mild, take some layers off. Get to work: it’s hot now, sweat as much as you can. Finish work: get out to catch bus/taxi it’s raining, so you’re wet through all the layers. Back on the train: mild, you’re steaming. Get out of the train: it’s suddenly freezing,.
I don’t mind what it does. I just mind it does something different every 5 minutes!
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Yeah. I forget how humid the UK can be and the layers and the sweating.
BeanOnAJourney@reddit
Every autumn and winter when the winds takes yet another roof slate (or several). It's very, very annoying.
BeneficialDonut3126@reddit
Never - I'm one of those weirdos who likes rain. Nothing I love more than being stuck in home reading while it's raining outside
Hoop66@reddit
As we say in Ireland, and it applies much the same to UK: If you don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes.
Unfair_March266@reddit
Growing up it used to rain every year on my birthday which is in early-mid august.
apeliott@reddit
When I was a kid in Wales seeing Neighbours and Home and Away every day while looking out the window at the cold, dark, drizzle.
I decided then that I wanted to leave.
-Soob@reddit
One of my clearest memories from children is me being incredibly angry after it rained for nearly 3 weeks straight during summer holidays and I was told that the school wouldn't give us extra time off to make up for it. Was probably like 7 years old and just starting to learn that summer in Wales didnt necessarily mean sunshine
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
I’ve never lived anywhere with 4 predictable seasons so the disappointment of the summers can be even worse than the winters.
RandomTopTT@reddit (OP)
Yeah. Seeing sunny places on TV like California or Australia had a big effect on me. I vividly remember thinking how amazing it would be to live somewhere that was guaranteed to be sunny and dry for multiple days in a row. And it is.
Which-Host-9073@reddit
Most of my life. Hence retiring to the sun in a few years time all being well. 🤞
tadpole-bear@reddit
When I’m trying to line up my work hours with childcare hours with high tide times in the summer. It’s almost impossible to slot in a sea swim as it is, but sometimes everything lines up just so – and it’s cold and windy and drizzly. The sun tends to come out when I’m at work, or it’s low tide, or I’ve got a kid with me 😭
EldritchSanta@reddit
Used to work outside, year round. The weather doesn't bother me anymore, it just is. No sense getting upset.
90210fred@reddit
When I first had to go to school, so 5 (started on the January intake). Have vivid memories.
SpiderLight97@reddit
Not a fan of the bigger storms (it’s a hassle to secure everything in the garden), but it’s fine otherwise. Would be nice if the sea got a tad warmer though.
Sirlacker@reddit
Whenever it rains.
It doesn't rain when I'm working inside. Only outside.
It only rains on the weekends I have things planned outdoors.
Fuck the rain.
DDAAVVEE123@reddit
It's the wind for me. At least with rain you can use an umbrella. Swear this year has been more windy than most
RiverTadpolez@reddit
The weather used to be much worse so I'm very happy with the the weather now.
High-Tom-Titty@reddit
Only recently when it's been so bloody windy, and has stopped raining. Other than that I love our temperate weather.
EggRepresentative215@reddit
When my roof started leaking.
WatermoonApollo@reddit
When the rain ruins my outfits. I’m a dedicated umbrella user because I hate hooded coats.