UK has some very variable weather, you can never forecast what a winter or summer will be like, sometimes you have a situation where an Azores high and Icelandic low can happen, this can direct very windy and wet weather over the UK and this can last for weeks or even months.
Other times a continental blocking high can cause dry hot summers, or dry bitterly cold winters.
I live in the UK but I don't know. We have always had floods in the UK.
The biggest ones recently were in the county of Somerset. It was under water for some weeks during the winter.
What was it like historically? Did it ever flood before?
Well the name is a clue. It means summer lands. It was called that because you could not do much with it in the winter - it was always too wet.
Alfred the Great (849 – 26 October 899) hid from the Vikings there one winter. He knew they would not be able to get at him until summer.
The early monks in Somerset used to try and drain it. We have done this until recently but now the European Parliament wants wetlands to be returned to their natural state so the drains are not well maintained any more. Then people act surprised when it floods!
The British have built housing developments on most of the flood plains and wetlands, so the water has no where to go when it rains. This wouldn't be problem is they'd listen to the Top Gear boys and build Hovervans.
Long ago folk used to build houses on legs, so the water flowed underneath them. I don't understand why houses in flood plains aren't built so they float up if it floods. Surely can't be beyond capability.
