A very British obsession

I do enjoy the peculiarities of my nation. The constant desire to drink tea, the toilet humour and the mistrust of anyone with ‘perfect’ teeth.

One particular thing I’ve noted this week is the  British ability to talk about the weather. Britain doesn’t really do ‘climate’. We tend to just have ‘weather’. More often than not it’s raining in the north of England. One would expect that these expected bouts of precipitation would mean little more than ensuring a brolly was always at hand. But no!

A 30 minute discussion can take place between virtual strangers on the fact that it is raining.

Similarly, when the sun shines and the temperature reaches double figures, it is possible to hear comments such as ‘That sun’s hot”.

Of course, different cultures have their own ice-breakers. Canadians may talk about how many bears they’ve spotted in the garden that morning,  Belgian people may talk about how many people they have bored rigid too.

Note that as I mentioned earlier, the Brits like weather, not climate. Hence films that predict climate change are not terribly well received. If a British film were to be made about climate change then it would be a short film about a period of snow that lasted for 4 days and the entire country grinds to a halt. The ending of the film would show rain and people generally grumbling about it.