Lesson 7 Ex.3a, 3b

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 463.

TM: Today our guest is an expert in weather and climate, a member of Royal meteorological society, a popular weather forecaster Simon King.

Hello Simon. And my first question is … Is it true that it always rains in Britain?

SK: Well, contrary to a popular belief, it DOES NOT rain every day in Britain. However, it's always advisable to bring some kind of a waterproof coat if you plan to visit the Isles and keep yourself psychologically prepared!

TM: So, it's true that a real Englishman carries around an umbrella and a pair of sunglasses in case the weather suddenly changes.

SK: You see, Britain is an island country and the surrounding sea gives it a varied climate. We never know what the weather will be like from one day to other. It can be sunny one day and rainy the next. As we have such a changeable weather from day to day it is difficult to predict it.

TM: Could you explain to our readers why it changes so fast. They say in Britain if you don't like the weather, wait a minute.

SK: The main influence on our climate is our closeness to the Atlantic Ocean and the warming of the waters around the land by the Gulf Stream (a warm current of the northern Atlantic Ocean).

Our island is small compared with the other land masses in the northern hemisphere – as a result Britain is more influenced by the ocean compared with other European countries, and the Gulf Stream helps to keep winters milder.

TM: So what is British climate like?

SK: In general we have warm summers and cool winters. Our summers are cooler than those on the continent, but the winters are milder. The overall climate in England is called temperate maritime. This means that it is mild with temperatures not much lower than 0ºC in winter and not much higher than 32ºC in summer. It also means that it is damp and changes frequently.

TM: What about the best time to visit the UK.

SK: July and August are normally the warmest month in England.

Around the coasts, February is normally the coldest month, but inland there is little to choose between January and February as the coldest month.

Probably the best months to travel in England are May, June, September and October. These months generally have the most pleasant temperatures and less rain. But even at that time be prepared for sometimes harsch weather conditions in the mountainous regions of Scotland.
July and August are the warmest months, but they are also the wettest. The sunniest parts of the Britain are along the south coast of England.

TM: And how come that British people have such a fascination with weather and weather forecasts?

SK: It's true, we love talking about the forecasts. And to answer we need to go back to the beginning of our conversation. We've already mentioned several times that the weather changes so often on our Isles and it's so unpredictable. As a result it brings some sort of a challenge to our everyday life. So to say we are a meteorologically-challenged nation! That's probably why discussing weather became a part of our daily routine.

TM: I see. And my last question would be what your favourite time of the year is.

SK: Well, I like St. Luke's summer. It is a period of fine, calm weather in the beginning of October. I normally try to get some days off and travel to the seaside to enjoy some sunshine before a gloomy winter.

TM: Thank you, Simon.