‘It’s commonly observed that when two Englishmen meet, their first talk is of the weather’

erful metaphor for how our nation became one of the powerhouses of the industrial age. Constable too was famous for capturing how the rain and clouds change our landscape in works such as Cloud Study Hampstead Heath in 1821. Our rainy weather has also shaped what we wear. It was in 1821 that the Duke of Wellington told his shoemakers to modify his boots to make them easier to pull on and off and that British stalwart, the Wellie, was born. A few years later, in 1824, Charles Mackintosh had worked out that by sandwiching cloth between layers of rubber, he could make a waterproof fabric which gave us the “Mac”.

OUR green pastures have also made it easier to raise large flocks of sheep, enabling England in the Middle Ages to become immensely rich as Europe’s biggest raw wool manufacturer. Later, the production of woollen cloth helped lead to the establishment of industrial hubs like Leeds and the creation of the UK’s vast canal system. Scotland’s inhospitable climate doubtless encouraged the production of sturdy textiles such as tweed and tartan.

But while all these have contributed to our culture, I would argue that the rain’s biggest contribution has been to our character. True, our weather may be partly to blame for our social awkwardness. As writer Samuel Johnson observed in 1758: “It is commonly observed that when two Englishmen meet, their first talk is of the weather.”

But then as a nation, we have never enjoyed the chatty, open air, convivial café society of the French or Italians. Instead our social life has been spent huddled around the bar in pubs or the fire to dry our clothes.

In his book Rain, Brian Cathcart says: “This is not to say we are indifferent to (rain). Rain is wet, it spoils hairstyles, it leaves clothes damp and puts them out of shape, it splashes uncomfortably on your face, it spatters your spectacles, it robs you of your composure and even, to small degree, your dignity.”

Yet against the odds, we keep on going. For the moment, coronavirus may have succeeded in cancelling events which have never previously been put off due to rain. But no virus can wipe out the lessons in resilience our weather has already taught us.

●●Tanith Carey is author of Never Kiss A Man In A Canoe: Words Of Wisdom from The Golden Age Of Agony Aunts, published by Little, Brown and available on Kindle via amazon.co.uk for £3.99.