On Thursday, 8 September 2016 12:32:34 UTC+1, P.Chortik wrote:
"John Hall" wrote in message ....

I've just stumbled on a link to a PDF file of an interesting set of
slides (by the look of it) produced by Stephen Burt on the winter of
1962-3:

https://www.rmets.org/sites/default/...32013-burt.pdf
--
John Hall
"Banking was conceived in iniquity and born in sin"
attributed to Sir Josiah Stamp,
a former director of the Bank of England
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ ++++++++++
Memories of mine from that Winter in Merstham Sy include my father
discovering frost lingering within the exposed surface coal/coke bunkers
located outside the house as late as the end of April.
In late January of 1963 I had to take one of my 11-plus exams in Wellingtons
that were overlaid with plastic bags that went up higher than the footwear
otherwise the snow/ice would have
got inside them.That morning I think the temperature was down to -16c and on
reaching school the hands and feet were numb from the cold and I remember
one 'teacher' chastising me for resting my mittened hands on a roasting hot
radiator ,exclaiming I would get chilblains.....

Now there's a proxy for a lack of severe UK winters, the almost now unheard off term 'chilblain'. Other things I've touched before is the disappearance of the unwanted Christmas presents i.e. aunties woolly and very itchy knitted scarf or other items that you had to struggle not to show your disappointment when you unwrapped them, gloves and thick socks. However they did get used. My mother who is 86 this year is still in that mind set where she will buy the most ridiculous thick coat and still say " Aw that will keep you nice and warm in the bitter cold", brrrrr...". The fact that rarely need wrapping up nowadays seems to escape her. I thing she gets a nice feeling that people are kept warm despite the fact its never that cold anymore. Actually when you think back to say that winter 62/63 cars were sparse and most people went to work by train, bus, bike or walk. I mentioned my dads old firms Morris Van

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...al_JB_1957.jpg

And that thing in the winter invariably had to be started via the starting handle which would nearly always kick back and bruise your hand. I remember in the school Christmas holidays going to work with him and the inside of the van was as cold as when we set off. Buses were the same the old opened back RT's ad RM's were always bloody cold. So you'd wait freezing at the bus stop and then freeze when you sat down. It was also always a battle to clear the smoke out of the bus as one could choke and everyone smoked those days so you avoided death by choking by opening the window (unless someone moaned at you) or kept it closed and took your chances with hypothermia.

So indoors , going to work, waiting for the bus or train and then inside the cold got you always . In fact at least you got warm if you worked indoors.. bloody employers , eh?