Brits love white powder – politicalbetting.com

DecrepiterJohnL said:

Nick Clegg banks £5.5m from Meta share sales
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nick-clegg-banks-55m-from-meta-share-sales-7bjtsrnk7 (£££)

DecrepiterJohnL said:

Nick Clegg banks £5.5m from Meta share sales
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nick-clegg-banks-55m-from-meta-share-sales-7bjtsrnk7 (£££)

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

rcs1000 said:

DecrepiterJohnL said:

Nick Clegg banks £5.5m from Meta share sales
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/nick-clegg-banks-55m-from-meta-share-sales-7bjtsrnk7 (£££)

Question: is that the *profit* on the sales? Or is that the gross value of the shares sold? (When you exercise options, you need to pay the strike price. And Meta shares haven't been that great performers of late.)

algarkirk said:

Alphabet_Soup said:

This is what a proper winter (1963) was like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMSdIT2Sp0s

Not the chilly spells with a dusting of light snow that we get these days.

(BBC documentary for Cliff Michelmore fans)

I remember it well. I had just turned 8. An era before most had central heating. Most of my memories of ice inside windows, in solid middle class London, come from that winter of early 1963. And it was an extraordinary start to what proved to be something of an epoch making and marking year. For Larkin it was the annus mirabilis, though not without irony.

So life was never better than
In nineteen sixty-three
(Though just too late for me) -
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles' first LP.

A further footnote is that at the time older folks said, and still say, it was no match for the winter of 1947.

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

Cyclefree said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

A local farmer has just cleared the snow from the lane in front of our house. We keep our own grit but the snow has been well over a foot deep.

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

DavidL said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I have Michelin all weather tyres and to be honest they are fine for anything I am going to be driving in.

My big problem is that my current car is an automatic. When I drove in snow in my previous cars I would try hard not to touch the brakes at all and use the gears to slow down where required. In an automatic I feel a lot less in control.

DavidL said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I have Michelin all weather tyres and to be honest they are fine for anything I am going to be driving in.

My big problem is that my current car is an automatic. When I drove in snow in my previous cars I would try hard not to touch the brakes at all and use the gears to slow down where required. In an automatic I feel a lot less in control.

AugustusCarp2 said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I would like to know a bit more about winter tyres, as I understand that they are mandatory in Germany. I have to drive to Southern Bavaria in March. 1) is that "winter" there? 2) do I really need a new set of tyres? 3) wouldn't existing set be OK? I'm only going for a long weekend, and I can't get there by train.

Cyclefree said:

For @StillWaters fpt

The Law Commission (not Law Society) recommendation has been enacted.

A couple of years ago, Alex Chalk asked various IT and legal experts to come up with recommendations for how computer based evidence should be treated by the courts. They did so.

You can read their recommendations here - https://journals.sas.ac.uk/deeslr/article/view/5240.

Since then the Justice Ministry has changed its mind and no review is planned, despite what the PO scandal has shown us. It is a stupid decision because it will inevitably mean more miscarriages of justice, for the reasons spelt out in my 2 recent headers.

boulay said:

AugustusCarp2 said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I would like to know a bit more about winter tyres, as I understand that they are mandatory in Germany. I have to drive to Southern Bavaria in March. 1) is that "winter" there? 2) do I really need a new set of tyres? 3) wouldn't existing set be OK? I'm only going for a long weekend, and I can't get there by train.

It’s not just the different grip pattern but the compound mix in the tyre is different and so more effective in cold weather.

In a lot of cold places it’s not necessarily mandatory but if you have an accident in the snow on summer tyres then it gives the insurers a good excuse to throw out any claim. I remember everyone kept their winter tyres on cheap basic wheels as the wheels got messed up in the winter conditions so they saved their “good” wheels for the summer.

As an aside my friends who live in the mountains swear that the best snow car is the old fiat panda 4x4. They were really light so no momentum leading to skidding when breaking and narrow tyres so better traction I believe. And good ground clearance.

algarkirk said:

DavidL said:

kjh said:

algarkirk said:

Alphabet_Soup said:

This is what a proper winter (1963) was like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMSdIT2Sp0s

Not the chilly spells with a dusting of light snow that we get these days.

(BBC documentary for Cliff Michelmore fans)

I remember it well. I had just turned 8. An era before most had central heating. Most of my memories of ice inside windows, in solid middle class London, come from that winter of early 1963. And it was an extraordinary start to what proved to be something of an epoch making and marking year. For Larkin it was the annus mirabilis, though not without irony.

So life was never better than
In nineteen sixty-three
(Though just too late for me) -
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles' first LP.

A further footnote is that at the time older folks said, and still say, it was no match for the winter of 1947.

Ditto. I was also 8. We had an outside loo. Chilly.

I am convinced that I remember us getting back to Worthy Down, outside Winchester, in 1963 and the snow being up to our second floor windows because of drift. I also remember my dad taking me into work about that time because the computers the RAPC , which were the size of a gym hall and had less computing power than this phone, generated so much heat the building was way warmer than our house.
The problem is that at that time I was 2 years, 3-4 months. Can anyone really remember back that far or have I created the memories from what I was told?

FWIW I think you can.

AugustusCarp2 said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I would like to know a bit more about winter tyres, as I understand that they are mandatory in Germany. I have to drive to Southern Bavaria in March. 1) is that "winter" there? 2) do I really need a new set of tyres? 3) wouldn't existing set be OK? I'm only going for a long weekend, and I can't get there by train.

Jim_Miller said:

In the US, snow removal failures can end political careers, for mayors. I can think, offhand, of two cities where that has happened, Chicago and Seattle, and I am sure there are many more.

Here's a hint for aspiring polticians: If there is a big snowfall in your area, and you need sidewalks cleared quickly, enlist the local sports teams in friendly competitions.

(In my little suburb, home owners are supposed to clear the walks in front of their homes. About half do, in my neighborhood.

Flatlander said:

AugustusCarp2 said:

Flatlander said:

boulay said:

Nigelb said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Proportional to the availability of local government funding, which is why they have inadequate grit, and vehicles able to deal with a few inches uf snow in the road.
Given the relative rarity of heavy snowfalls in much of the UK in recent decades, you can understand why councils don’t allocate much of their dwindling resources to it.

I remember in Geneva they had, despite it being worthwhile and justifiable to spend on vehicles to deal with snow, special boxes that went on the back of skip lorries which sprayed grit and snow plough attachments for tractors so when there was heavy snow the skip companies and farmers put the attachments on and were paid to help deal with the roads.

Whilst it’s still a cost it’s a lot cheaper option for a country like the UK than buying millions of specialist gritters and ploughs.

I don't know why more people don't use winter tyres. They work really well on cold wet roads as well as snowy ones.

You can only wear one set of tyres out at a time so they don't really add much to running costs.

I would like to know a bit more about winter tyres, as I understand that they are mandatory in Germany. I have to drive to Southern Bavaria in March. 1) is that "winter" there? 2) do I really need a new set of tyres? 3) wouldn't existing set be OK? I'm only going for a long weekend, and I can't get there by train.

I don't think there's a fixed period, it is just "winter conditions" when they are mandatory. March might be dodgy.

Anything with the alpine symbol (mountain with snowflake) on it will pass, which does include some 'AllSeason' types.

I have a set of these:
https://www.continental-tyres.co.uk/b2c/car/tyres/wintercontact-ts-860/

That may be overkill for just a weekend. Maybe wait and see if global warming kicks in...

algarkirk said:

DavidL said:

kjh said:

algarkirk said:

Alphabet_Soup said:

This is what a proper winter (1963) was like:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RMSdIT2Sp0s

Not the chilly spells with a dusting of light snow that we get these days.

(BBC documentary for Cliff Michelmore fans)

I remember it well. I had just turned 8. An era before most had central heating. Most of my memories of ice inside windows, in solid middle class London, come from that winter of early 1963. And it was an extraordinary start to what proved to be something of an epoch making and marking year. For Larkin it was the annus mirabilis, though not without irony.

So life was never better than
In nineteen sixty-three
(Though just too late for me) -
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles' first LP.

A further footnote is that at the time older folks said, and still say, it was no match for the winter of 1947.

Ditto. I was also 8. We had an outside loo. Chilly.

I am convinced that I remember us getting back to Worthy Down, outside Winchester, in 1963 and the snow being up to our second floor windows because of drift. I also remember my dad taking me into work about that time because the computers the RAPC , which were the size of a gym hall and had less computing power than this phone, generated so much heat the building was way warmer than our house.
The problem is that at that time I was 2 years, 3-4 months. Can anyone really remember back that far or have I created the memories from what I was told?

FWIW I think you can.

kinabalu said:

isam said:

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

That happened not on Christmas Eve but my birthday last year. I went out for Sunday lunch with my parents, girlfriend and our children, came home and watched The Snowman. When we looked outside at about 6pm it had started to snow. Put the kids to bed, and in the morning the snow had settled so we built a snowman in the back garden.

Followers of mine on insta or Facebook will have seen this documented, I was quite excited by it all

And (Bowie voice) was it a real snowman?

TheScreamingEagles said:

England's new ODI team look quite tasty.

325 against the Windies on what looks like a 250 pitch.

viewcode said:

kinabalu said:

isam said:

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

That happened not on Christmas Eve but my birthday last year. I went out for Sunday lunch with my parents, girlfriend and our children, came home and watched The Snowman. When we looked outside at about 6pm it had started to snow. Put the kids to bed, and in the morning the snow had settled so we built a snowman in the back garden.

Followers of mine on insta or Facebook will have seen this documented, I was quite excited by it all

And (Bowie voice) was it a real snowman?

[Bowie impersonation on]

Aaaand WaWaWaas it a reeeeeeeeeeeeel snwmn?

[Bowie impersonation off]

isam said:

kinabalu said:

isam said:

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

That happened not on Christmas Eve but my birthday last year. I went out for Sunday lunch with my parents, girlfriend and our children, came home and watched The Snowman. When we looked outside at about 6pm it had started to snow. Put the kids to bed, and in the morning the snow had settled so we built a snowman in the back garden.

Followers of mine on insta or Facebook will have seen this documented, I was quite excited by it all

And (Bowie voice) was it a real snowman?

Bowie’s hair in the early 80s was fantastic. Such a turnaround from the weird 70s look. One of the first records I ever bought was Modern Love, he looked really cool in the video

The snowman was real, and he was called Sausage

Sunil_Prasannan said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

Test

Die Hard is most definitely a Christmas movie!

Die Hard is a Christmas movie, full stop.
Steven E. de Souza, who penned the film’s script more than 30 years ago, is adamant about that.

https://blog.finaldraft.com/steven-e-de-souza-die-hard-is-a-christmas-movie

kinabalu said:

isam said:

kinabalu said:

isam said:

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

That happened not on Christmas Eve but my birthday last year. I went out for Sunday lunch with my parents, girlfriend and our children, came home and watched The Snowman. When we looked outside at about 6pm it had started to snow. Put the kids to bed, and in the morning the snow had settled so we built a snowman in the back garden.

Followers of mine on insta or Facebook will have seen this documented, I was quite excited by it all

And (Bowie voice) was it a real snowman?

Bowie’s hair in the early 80s was fantastic. Such a turnaround from the weird 70s look. One of the first records I ever bought was Modern Love, he looked really cool in the video

The snowman was real, and he was called Sausage

All together now ... Awwww.

I liked all of Bowie's ch-ch-ch-changing looks.

Eg the Snowman. Managed to look the bees knees in a 'busy' and too tight Christmas jumper.

Andy_JS said:

Can anyone explain why there's a question mark over whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie?

Andy_JS said:

Can anyone explain why there's a question mark over whether or not Die Hard is a Christmas movie?

Sunil_Prasannan said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

Sunil_Prasannan said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

Test

Die Hard is most definitely a Christmas movie!

Die Hard is a Christmas movie, full stop.
Steven E. de Souza, who penned the film’s script more than 30 years ago, is adamant about that.

https://blog.finaldraft.com/steven-e-de-souza-die-hard-is-a-christmas-movie

And I describe myself as a modest guy.

Doesn't make it true, just like Mr de Souza's assertion.

He wrote the script! I would rather believe him than some random bloke on PB

isam said:

kinabalu said:

isam said:

kinabalu said:

isam said:

TimS said:

Stuartinromford said:

david_herdson said:

So the degree of enjoyment is inversely proportional to the likelihood of it happening, going by those regional breakdowns? Or in other words, it's more enjoyable in concept than reality*?

* After a couple of days anyway.

Pretty much.

Snow should arrive overnight (but not until everyone is safely home... There was a notorious snowfall in Cambridge in the early 2000s where the gritters got caught in the evening traffic jams) and melt properly the following day, avoiding slush and black ice.

Yes, I am from southern Hampshire, how did you guess?

(The best snowfall I ever experienced was when some freak conditions led to snow falling in Seville. It sent the locals utterly bonkers.)

Snow should of course start falling just before the children’s bedtime on an already frosty Christmas Eve. There should have been no snow beforehand. Then the following day should dawn under a thick sparkling cover.

That’s the Hollywood canon but I don’t think it’s actually done that in my entire adult life, maybe my entire life. There’s been snowfall on Christmas Day, though nothing special. There’s been snow lying on Christmas Day from a previous fall. But not the classic Christmas Eve overnight fall.

Will it happen in Southern England in my lifetime? Or ever?

That happened not on Christmas Eve but my birthday last year. I went out for Sunday lunch with my parents, girlfriend and our children, came home and watched The Snowman. When we looked outside at about 6pm it had started to snow. Put the kids to bed, and in the morning the snow had settled so we built a snowman in the back garden.

Followers of mine on insta or Facebook will have seen this documented, I was quite excited by it all

And (Bowie voice) was it a real snowman?

Bowie’s hair in the early 80s was fantastic. Such a turnaround from the weird 70s look. One of the first records I ever bought was Modern Love, he looked really cool in the video

The snowman was real, and he was called Sausage

All together now ... Awwww.

I liked all of Bowie's ch-ch-ch-changing looks.

Eg the Snowman. Managed to look the bees knees in a 'busy' and too tight Christmas jumper.

Bowie aged like a fine wine. Was a bit of a minger in the 70s though for me - the white powder years…

TheScreamingEagles said:

England's new ODI team look quite tasty.

325 against the Windies on what looks like a 250 pitch.

CatMan said:

TheScreamingEagles said:

England's new ODI team look quite tasty.

325 against the Windies on what looks like a 250 pitch.

Urghhh, now you've done it...

OysterOctopus said:

Happy first day of Advent all.

My favourite Christmas film is On Her Majesty's Secret Service