From: The Racketeer 57, March 2005
VINNY'S WEATHER ARCHIVES
Summer of Drought
by Vince Selke
Club treasurer and amateur meteorologist, Vince Selke, begins an occasional series exploring a great British obsession - and we don't mean tennis.
1976 WILL BE remembered for many things: Starsky and Hutch, tank tops, tonic suits and trousers, flares, and probably above all the summer of drought. As far back as May 1975 a dry spell started which eventually lasted a record-breaking 16 months until August 1976. Many reservoirs were already running low by the end of '75.
The summer of '75 started in May; apart from a short cold blast which brought lying snow on Monday 2nd June, it was warm or hot until September.
That sporting summer included the 'I'm trying for Christ's sake' Wimbledon final between Connors and Ashe, and the first ever cricket world cup played for three weeks in June in almost unbroken sunshine. The Australians stayed on afterwards for a test series and during the Lords test, played in 90-degree heat; we had the infamous streaker who managed to make his way across the pitch and jump over the stumps. John Arlott was commentating on Test Match Special at the time and described it thus: 'and there's a freaker, not very shapely, and it's masculine, and I would think it's seen the last of its cricket for the day'. August 1975 became at that time the warmest on record, until surpassed in 1995 and although there were some storms that summer, overall it was on the dry side.
The autumn was quiet and often fine, and the winter very mild and dry. By the spring of 1976 Government ministers were urging us to reuse bath and washing up water on the garden, and farmers were struggling to plant crops with moisture levels so low. Early May saw the heat arrive, although some rain accompanied this, but the fine weather was soon back and it remained warm. There was no measurable rain in many parts of the south between May 20 and June 19. This was the Saturday before Wimbledon and I seem to remember Connors and Nastase, sliding around the grass courts of The Park, trying to play the final in annoying drizzle.
The centrepiece of the 1976 summer was the unprecedented heat wave, which lasted from June 22 to July 16, a period of 25 consecutive days on each of which the temperature climbed to 27°C (81°F), somewhere in the UK. Even more remarkable, the temperature reached 32°C (90°F) on every one of the 15 successive days from June 23 to July 7. A drought bill was rushed through parliament and a range of measures introduced, including standpipes. Minister for Sport Dennis Howell took on a second portfolio as Minister for Drought. Motorways had problems with tarmac melting and large areas of heath turned brown. Some fires that broke out had to be left to burn to conserve water while witch doctors started performing rain dances. Elton John and Kiki Dee spent six weeks topping the charts while our much-admired editor was, from a very young age, perfecting his footwork and approach play to the net.
After a very warm, sunny August a few local heavy showers developed over the bank holiday weekend. However the weather didn't break properly until a week or so into September when it broke with a vengeance. The autumn of 1976 still ranks somewhere in the top 15 wettest on record, parts of the south having double their normal rainfall. By February 1977 the drought was a dim and distant memory, as, following a wet winter, parts of the UK suffered from flooding.
In the tennis world, the official world rankings started in November 1975 and Jimmy Connors and Chris Evert remained number one throughout 1976. Grand Slam winners during the year were in Australia, Mark Edmondson and Evonne Cawley, at Roland Garros, Adriano Panatta and our very own Sue Barker. At Wimbledon Bjorn Borg won the first of his five consecutive titles, with Chris Evert taking the second of her three crowns, while at the US Open Connors and Evert triumphed.