St Swithin's Day

A well known weather saying that has - thankfully - never  proved correct.

St Swithin's Day, if thou dost rain

For forty days it will remain.

St Swithin's Day, if thou be fair

For forty days, twill rain no more.

It was especially wrong in 1976 when there were lots of violent thunderstorms with rain over night on the 15th and then for the next 40 days there was virtually no rain, leading to the hottest summer and worst drought in living memory.

[I was working on the mobile library which was before any sort of air conditioning, so we sweltered in a 'tin box' - day after day].

St Swithin was an English  monk who became Bishop of Winchester in 852 and died 10 years later. At his request he was buried in the churchyard rather than inside. On 15th July 971 his remains were moved to an appropriate resting place inside the Cathedral. This coincided with a period of heavy rain that lasted for 40 days - and that's how the prediction started. 

Another old rhyme, found in one of my folklore books - written in the 18th century

Now if on St Swithin's Feast the welkin lours,

And every pent house streams with hasty showers.

Twice twenty day shall clouds their fleeces drain,

And wash the pavements with incessant rain.

('welkin' is the sky and 'lours' means glowers or  threatens)

The picture comes from The Farmers Almanac website

Back soon.

PS Hooray to the BBC for Quizzy Mondays being ⅔ back - a small crumb after the weeks of tennis watching! and I promise no more mentions of tennis until next year!