Valentine's Day weather; lovely this year and a look at February 14th records past

It's going to be a lovely day and that's not dependent on what the postie brings. Never mind a mystery card on the mat, flowers delivered to work, chocolates to scoff or a romantic meal for two, wedged in next to all the other couples. No, the weather is behaving in February!

Today

So Hoorah for a southerly breeze, clearing skies and sunny spells. There will be a bit of a nippy start for England and Wales with a bit of fog or low cloud. Also, patchy rain for the NW Highlands with more cloud in the far NW first thing but the day improves with plenty of fine weather, sunshine and hints of spring.

Today many places will see temperatures in double figures with 13 or 14C likely even 15 or 16C on the cards. In the southerly breeze, northern Scotland looks favourable, Northumberland and north Wales, all to the lee of high ground. 

Previous Valentine records

The warmest ever Valentines's day was in 1998 in Somerset at 19.1C (66F). The coldest was nearly -6C, that was the max. in North Yorkshire and Banffshire in 1979. The depths of winter that year. In 1989 over 100mm of rain fell in Inverness-shire, over 4" rain with a wild storm for the night of the 13/14th. And the highest low level gust recorded ever in the UK 142mph that night (the 13th) in Fraserburgh Aberdeenshire. In 2014 the Needles IOW recorded a wind gust of 109mph on the 14th.

This year?

At this time of year it is possible to get over 9 hours of sunshine and with the Fohn effects in the southerly wind this year a temperature record might be broken. The UK record is 19.1C as mentioned, at Tivington, England. For Wales 17.3C in Powys, Northern Ireland is 16.4C at Belfast and  Scotland 15.3C all in 1998 another warm Valentine's Day. 

Happy Valentine's everyone, a love poem to end, from 'I Wanna Be Yours…'  John Cooper Clarke

   I wanna be your vacuum cleaner
   Breathing in your dust
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   I will never rust...