‘A few inches of snow in November? It's child's play compared to 1963’s Big Freeze’

Fleet Street fable and Mirror columnist, Paul Routledge, sends gentle tales from his West Yorkshire allotment, Mrs R’s pantry and his local, the Old White Bear. This week, Paul is amazed to spot his hometown has made the nationalist upwind forecast

I KNEW thing was up erstwhile Keighley abruptly appeared connected the BBC nationalist upwind map. My suspicions were confirmed adjacent time erstwhile Hebden Bridge was besides rescued from meteorological obscurity.

These Pennine towns seldom marque Look North, ne'er caput the nationalist forecast, but present they’re famous.

Why? Snow was coming! You know, the achromatic worldly that comes down from grey clouds and stops the trains running. You indispensable retrieve it from childhood. The Beeb warned of 5 to 10 centimetres falling connected precocious ground. Engaging with my British History Rulers woody ruler, that’s conscionable nether my small digit to a handful.

That’s perchance superior present successful Cross Hills, altitude 528ft, rising to 1,131ft connected Earl Crag. We’ve been chopped disconnected earlier today. But it’s years since we had immoderate due snow, and radical blasted clime change.

Er, sorry. Climate is what they person darn sarf. We person weather, sometimes much than we tin consume.

The snow came connected schedule, but it was a mediocre show. An inch oregon truthful fell, offering beauteous Christmas paper scenes. It didn’t settee connected roads oregon pavements. They had it overmuch worse further south.

But for those of america who endured the Big Freeze of 1963 and horrors of 1947 erstwhile I was a nipper, this was conscionable playing astatine it. Mrs R, who hates the stuff, was mightily relieved, though she has blessed puerility memories of playing retired successful the cold.

Winter substance payments should beryllium going retired present to millions of pensioners. But the Budget enactment paid to that for most, portion state and energy prices are acceptable to emergence again.

And we’re not yet successful December. On with that other layer! Mrs R is already successful her Scandi-style jumper.

WHEN did men successful this state halt wearing hats? I don’t mean American shot caps, acceptable backwards to marque the wearer look adjacent much stupid. Nor the natty pork-pie assortment favoured by popular singers, presumably to disguise their retreating hairsbreadth lines.

Nor adjacent the level ’at, erstwhile ubiquitous successful the North but besides a diagnostic of moving people communities anywhere. And surely not the fancy mentation worn by the huntin’ ’n’ shootin’ fraternity. No, I mean the trilby, which was astir portion of the white-collar worker’s uniform.

My begetter Harry, a railway clerk, wouldn’t person been seen dormant retired successful the thoroughfare bareheaded. Some adjacent wore their hats astatine home, and surely successful the pub oregon club. They were a badge of respectability. I’m reminded of this hat-lore viewing 1960s films. You tin archer the goodies from the baddies by their headgear: detectives wore trilbies and the villains either nowt oregon a scruffy cap.

These days, cipher wears a due hat. Philip, the precocious Duke of Edinburgh, often sported the existent thing, and truthful did a definite people of Tory MP. So erstwhile did UK Man spell head-naked? It was a dilatory process aft the Second World War, that peaked successful the Swinging Sixties, erstwhile young men would beryllium embarrassed to beryllium seen wearing their father’s titfer. Change besides coincided with the emergence successful car ownership. Hats got successful the mode down the wheel.

I’ve ne'er worn a hat, but the hideous headdress for Normanton Grammar School, but I tin spot they did bestow a definite prestige. And what of the enactment suit? Will that spell the mode of the trilby? Indeed, has it gone already, led by jean-clad tech billionaires?