Why Britons just can't stop talking about the weather
another
Be in no doubt, whether it’s meeting someone for the first time, filling an awkward
devastated
silence or breaking the (1)___________ in a job interview, what’s going on in the
even
ever
forecasts
from
sky can always revive a conversation. We dissect it, analyse it, regularly show
surprise at it, love it and hate it (2)__________ immersing ourselves in it during
the
summer
and
hiding
away
(3)__________
it
in
winter.
And some of us spend a good proportion of our lives writing about it.
hurricanes
ice
Britain is a nation obsessed (4)___________ the weather, whichever way you look
in
at it - in fact. A recent (5)____________ revealed that when asked to identify
nothing
what makes us uniquely British, most of us think it’s our love of talking about the
other
weather. Heatwaves, snow, (6)__________, rain, clouds, gales and storms beat
own
50 (7)__________ typically British features including sarcasm, drinking tea and
something
keeping a stiff upper lip.
survey
than
There are several theories as to why on this great island we love nothing more
which
(8)_____________ discussing the forecast or the fallout from a bad spell of snow
while
or rain. Many think it is down to the variable nature of our climate, or our infamous
who
rain and gloom gives us plenty to satisfy out (9)____________ obsession -
with
moaning.
We do not have the dramatic extremes of cold experienced in say Northern Europe where the
mercury can plunge to -30C, or Australia which recently battled devastating forest fires sparked
by highs nudging 50C. Nor do we have the typhoons and (10)_____________ which sweep
through the Far East and America tearing houses from their foundations and leaving vast
communities (11)_____________ in their wake.
So why do we feel our relatively calm climate warrants such discussion? Are we just a nation of
dullards with little else to base a discussion around? Experts have their (12)__________
opinions. Vantage Weather Services’ Jonathan Powell said part of the reason is Britain’s
location in the world (13)___________ makes for a changeable weather picture. He said
extreme variations in the weather can happen in a matter of hours rapidly generating new
talking points. The weather is always among those three conversation opening gambits
because there is always (14)___________ to say. And no one day is the same, whatever the
season, there is always something different to say about the weather. (15)___________ in one
day, that old saying of four seasons is very true, you can get huge variations in the climate.”
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