In article ,
"danny (west kent)" writes:
In Easterlies of the past the temperature was sub zero .. e.g. ice on the
ground every 'day'.

Not always. I recall that at the end of January, 1986 the wind went into
the east about four days before the really cold air arrived. Until then
temperatures were mostly about 2-4C in the south. That was because mild
westerlies had penetrated deep into Europe just beforehand, and the
really cold air had a long way to travel to get here. Of course, once it
_did_ get here we had a memorable four weeks.
--
John Hall
"If a man will begin with certainties, he shall end in doubts;
but if he will be content to begin with doubts,
he shall end in certainties." Francis Bacon (1561-1626)