As the Olympic Games approach, and hopes of a great British summer are fading, Britons are preparing to sing in the rain.
It was roof open, roof closed at Wimbledon, a mudbath for Formula One spectators at Silverstone, and drivers stranded in flooded car parks in Weymouth in Dorset, the site of the Olympic sailing event.
“We have, with this unsettled weather, made a survey of all the Olympic sites around the country to make sure they will be resilient to flood as this period of unsettled weather may continue,” Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said at the weekend.
But as Wellington boots and colourful plastic ponchos become a must—have item on every outing, Britons have decided to defy the vagaries of the notorious British weather.
Sales of umbrellas, boots and rainwear have shot up, according to retailers, as has the turnover of mood-boosting herbal drugs, reported the Daily Mail .
At Wimbledon, a sea of red umbrellas carrying the wartime slogan “Keep clam and carry on” went up as the crowd waited to cheer their idols Sunday and, in London’s Hyde Park, festival-goers were dancing in the rain.
It all started with the enduring image of a drenched chamber music choir giving a rousing rendition of the national anthem and Land of Hope and Glory during the Diamond Jubilee flotilla for Queen Elizabeth II in June.
Ever since then, Britons have decided to make the best of the weather -- and even to make it a special “British” feature of this summer’s events.
The weather has failed to dampen the enthusiastic spirit that has accompanied the 70-day procession of the Olympic torch across Britain, with large crowds cheering the symbol at every turn.
The torch, now on day 52 of its journey to London for the opening ceremony for the Olympics on July 27, has been given a warm welcome despite unseasonal temperatures, rain, storm and floods.
Matt Dobson, a forecaster at Meteogroup, said Britain would experience another seven to 10 days of heavy rain. Weathermen have blamed the jet stream as the main culprit -- a fast wind that blows round the planet and moves surface pressure systems.
“Our weather is really stuck in a rut because the jet stream is further south than it should be at this time of the year -- over France and northern Spain -- and we are under a blanket of low pressure on the northern side of it,” said Dobson.
Some forecasters have predicted that the summer washout is set to last for the next 30 days. In which case, the fake clouds and rain planned for Danny Boyle’s spectacular opening ceremony of the Olympics may not be needed.
