"Earlier on today, apparently, a woman rang the BBC and said she'd heard there was a hurricane on the way. Well, if you are watching, don't worry. There isn't..." TV weather forecaster, Michael Fish, 15 October 1987.
Technically, Fish was right. We don't get hurricanes this far north, as they are tropical storms. But a storm was certainly on its way, and it would give a few hurricanes a run for their money.
We're not short of storms in Britain. But they usually hit places that are used to it – Scotland and the southwest, for example. But on this day in 1987 a storm was brewing in the Bay of Biscay that would take an unusual line, and ravage southeast England, causing £2bn of damage, and leaving 18 people dead, plus another four dead in northern France.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
The “Great Storm” of 1987 saw winds hit 115mph before the anemometer broke in Shoreham on the south coast, and 94mph in London. The average wind speed across southeast England was 50mph, and out to sea, the average was 86mph.
An estimated 15 million trees fell, blocking roads and railways, and cutting power lines. The town of Sevenoaks became Oneoak.
It was the worst storm in southern England since 1703, and was classed as a “once in 200 years” storm. And its timing could not have been worse, coming right before the weekend. Traders couldn't get to their desks on Friday, while markets around the world were selling off. When traders did return on Monday morning – AKA “Black Monday” – the stockmarket went into meltdown as panic selling took hold. The market closed down over 10%.
The failure of the Met Office to accurately predict the storm's path led to a public enquiry, and the eventual formation of the National Severe Weather Warning Service.
New technology, including the increased use of satellites, remote sensing and powerful computers, has massively increased the accuracy of forecasts. Forecasting the weather is still notoriously hit and miss, but the Met Office isn't doing too bad a job of it – at the last count, 92% of its next-day temperature forecasts are accurate to within 2 degrees C and 91% of its next-day wind speed forecasts are accurate to within 5 knots.
Below you can see Michael Fish's infamous forecast. And to be fair, he does say it's going to get windy.
-
Gold’s allure and why you should never 'pay a premium for graded coins'It is easy to become distracted by the beauty of gold, but remember why you buy it, says Dominic Frisby
-
A rebound in UK's commercial property – should you invest?UK commercial property's three-year bear market finally appears to be over, says Max King
-
31 August 1957: the Federation of Malaya declares independence from the UKFeatures On this day in 1957, after ten years of preparation, the Federation of Malaya became an independent nation.
-
13 April 1960: the first satellite navigation system is launchedFeatures On this day in 1960, Nasa sent the Transit 1B satellite into orbit to provide positioning for the US Navy’s fleet of Polaris ballistic missile submarines.
-
9 April 1838: National Gallery opens in Trafalgar SquareFeatures On this day in 1838, William Wilkins’ new National Gallery building in Trafalgar Square opened to the public.
-
3 March 1962: British Antarctic Territory is createdFeatures On this day in 1962, Britain formed the British Antarctic Territory administered from the Falkland Islands.
-
10 March 2000: the dotcom bubble peaks
Features Tech mania fanned by the dawning of the internet age inflated the dotcom bubble to maximum extent, on this day in 2000.
-
9 March 1776: Adam Smith publishes 'The Wealth of Nations'
Features On this day in 1776, Adam Smith, the “father of modern economics”, published his hugely influential book The Wealth of Nations.
-
8 March 1817: the New York Stock Exchange is formedFeatures On this day in 1817, a group of brokers moved out of a New York coffee house to form what would become the biggest stock exchange in the world.
-
7 March 1969: Queen Elizabeth II officially opens the Victoria Line
Features On this day in 1969, Queen Elizabeth II took only her second trip on the tube to officially open the underground’s newest line – the Victoria Line.
