Are we in for 40 days of rain?

Rain or shine

Has a wet St Swithin’s Day (15 July) ever been followed by 40 wet days or a dry one by 40 dry days?

– Since 1861, according to the Met Office there is not a single instance of the legend being literally true in England. However, the late meteorologist Philip Eden did record a near miss in 1995 when only two of the 40 days following a dry St Swithin’s Day, 15 July, were wet at his home in the Home Counties. 

– In 1976 there were also just two wet days in the same period. However, in that year 15 July had seen thunderstorms over much of southern England – a rare wet day in an otherwise parched summer.

Dangerous politics

Which are the most deadly countries in which to be a political leader?  

Number of assassinations of serving and former prime ministers, presidents, monarchs or other heads of state since 1900:

Afghanistan, Iran, Jordan – 5

Egypt, Portugal, Yemen – 4

Italy, Serbia, Japan, Spain, Romania, Syria, Burundi,  Nigeria, Bangladesh – 3

India, US, Bulgaria,  China, Mexico, Austria, Haiti, Russia, Pakistan, Lebanon, Iraq, Sri Lanka/Ceylon, Chad, Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Rwanda – 2

Baby bust

There were 598,393 births and 597,992 deaths in England and Wales in the year to mid-2023, meaning that the natural growth in the population (i.e.