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Will it be a White Christmas in Dorchester?

Friday, December 11th, 2015

Many of us want to know if it will be white Christmas in Dorchester. For many of us, snow is synonymous with this time of year. Bing Crosby famously dreamt of it, while adverts, advent calendars, movies and Christmas cards are all decorated with snow-filled scenes of a White Christmas.

Borough Gardens in the snow

However, for most parts of the United Kingdom, December is only at the beginning of the period when snow is likely to fall. We are more likely to see white scenes between January and March than in December with snow or sleet falling an average 3.9 days in December, compared to 5.3 days in January, 5.6 days in February and 4.2 days in March.

Photos from the past show us that Dorchester suffered from one of the worst winter spells in 1881 which was the heaviest fall for fifty years. Looking down The Grove from Top o’ Town. Hardy’s statue was to be placed in the trees, centre, more than 40 years later.

 

 

Dorchester in snow circa 1881
Dorchester in snow circa 1881
Thomas Hardy statue in the snow 2009
Thomas Hardy statue got a light dusting of snow during the winter of 2009

 

White Christmas in Dorchester 2010

The last widespread White Christmas in the UK was in 2010. This also included Dorchester which saw a great deal of snow fall in the week before Christmas Day.

Snow at Maiden Castle in 2010. A white Christmas in Dorchester.
The view from Maiden Castle on Christmas Day 2010
Getting some air time on an inflatable mattresses in 2010 at the Roman Aqueduct.
Getting some air time on an inflatable mattresses in 2010 at the Roman Aqueduct.

The current mild weather and long range forecast doesn’t bode well for seeing a repeat of the snowy scenes that we’ve previously experienced, there have been much fewer frosts so far than in year gone by. Although snow has already fallen this year in many northern areas and on higher ground it would seem that Christmas in Dorchester will escape a white out…. for now!

 

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