Is UK weather as bad as many people say?

Hello Everyone.Need some advice.

My girlfriend has been in my ear for a few years about moving to the UK and making it our home.She was born in Manchester and misses her family, and I'm from America.I'm open to the idea of living in a different culture and the way she describes England I must say it all sounds good.But what could be a major deal breaker is the difference in climate.

She is telling me that UK weather(near Essex,where we would relocate to) is not as bad as people say, but I'm not so sure.My nephew's girlfriend,who is British born has told me the weather in the UK is horrible and how it forces people to stay indoors during the winters.Checking the tempts in various areas of the UK has not ease my concerns at all.I'm told the yahoo tempt's reading of UK weather don't explain the whole story.

That a 27 degrees reading is not the worse of it.The worse is the damp,the blowing rain and constant dampness.I can handle cold climates but horrible dampness is not idea weather for a person with Bronchitis.Don't want to dissapoint  my soon to be wife nor do I want to live in a place where I feel like I'm drowning in my own fluids. Can someone please tell me are my concerns about UK weather justified?

Thank You

MyDogsWalker - Where do you live now?
I live in Texas and YES it is very different but every city is different. My DH says it is freezing there but I am originally from Jersey and the temps are about the same. Yes it rains and is more damp and from what I hear you don't wear as many shorts like I would here in Texas.

My choice to move was not a weather based decision - it was a heart/love based decision.  Do you think weather is really a deal breaker for you?
Why couldn't you get married and move there on a 5 year plan and try it - ya never know.
You may enjoy the enjoyable springs and autumns and the not scorching heat in the summer?

You will never know until you try ;-)

It's hard to say because what you think is really bad, someone else might think isn't that bad at all.  I definitely don't think that

the weather in the UK is horrible and how it forces people to stay indoors during the winters.

is true at all.  People in the UK go out in all sorts of weather; the rain, wind, and cold do not stop them!  But if you are used to sunny, warm weather then you will likely find it a big change.  You didn't say where you are from in your post.  

Don't let the current weather in the UK dissuade you as this is very unusual and not the norm at all for winter.

But I would say the best bet is to visit in the winter if you can.  Then you can really get a feel for what it's like.  Before we moved, we took a 3 week trip in January and we felt that if we could stand that, we should do alright.

I grew up in Wisconsin and find the weather in southern England to be quite mild by comparison.  But if you're from California you might find it difficult to adjust, same as you would if you moved from Cali to WI. 

I'm from California, so I find all of this weather fascinating. And entertaining.  It only keeps you in if you let it!  I'm up in Manchester, and I really like it.  I walk to and from work and horseback ride outside every week.  Just like any other place, there are people that really dislike the weather here, but I'll be honest, it is really a personal preference. I've lived a few years in Minnesota and the Bay Area, and I would say that the weather here is no more problematic that the weather in either of those places!

As far as bronchitis, I have really, really bad allergies, and the first three months here were painful, but my body has adjusted here, but YMMV.

I suggest you come over for a visit....get an idea of what things are like, of course it can't give you a full picture but people can let you know if the weather you experience is typical when you are here-- if you come for at least a couple of weeks you should have at least one typical day

Whatever the weather, it doesn't keep people indoors! The UK is a nation of walkers!

Whatever the weather, it doesn't keep people indoors! The UK is a nation of walkers!

And they have all got out their walking sticks in this snow!  I'm walking home, and I felt like a loser because I didn't have a cool telescoping walking stick of my own.  It's like they all looked outside and said "Ah ha! I am not afraid of you, weather! I have my Lake District brand walking stick!" And then they go outside and stomp to work.

Um, like I said I find all of this weather and etc very entertaining.

Whatever the weather, it doesn't keep people indoors! The UK is a nation of walkers!

Definitely - I walked 2 miles in the snow today, just to meet my mum for lunch . It rains on approximately 3 out of every 4 days here, so if the weather kept us indoors, no one would ever go anywhere (however, Essex is one of the driest areas of the UK - apparently in some years, Essex gets less rain than Jerusalem!). It might actually be nice if the weather kept me indoors for the winter, but alas I have to get up and drive to work every day .

Checking the tempts in various areas of the UK has not ease my concerns at all.I'm told the yahoo tempt's reading of UK weather don't explain the whole story.

That a 27 degrees reading is not the worse of it.The worse is the damp,the blowing rain and constant dampness.

The temperatures in the UK at the moment are about 5 degrees Celsius below average for early January, due to polar air coming down from the Arctic instead of the usual warmer air moving east from the Atlantic - the normal average temperature for this time of year is around 40-45 degrees fahrenheit (around 5-8 degrees Celsius). It's also very unusual to have snow at this time of year too... the country is currently experiencing its worst snowfall in decades!

I grew up in Wisconsin and find the weather in southern England to be quite mild by comparison.  But if you're from California you might find it difficult to adjust, same as you would if you moved from Cali to WI. 

Hey, now!  California isn't all sunshine and palm trees, no matter what the tourism board wants you to believe.  And, honestly, adjusting from one climate to another isn't difficult if you go into it with an educated and open mind (and the appropriate outerwear, of course).

Signed,
A CA to WI transplant

It gives us something to talk about otherwise we would be speechless. (says the one who has been in the US temporally for 55 years.)

Hey, now!  California isn't all sunshine and palm trees, no matter what the tourism board wants you to believe.  And, honestly, adjusting from one climate to another isn't difficult if you go into it with an educated and open mind (and the appropriate outerwear, of course).

Signed,
A CA to WI transplant

Agreed.  

Signed,

A WI to CA transplant

Hey, now!  California isn't all sunshine and palm trees, no matter what the tourism board wants you to believe.  And, honestly, adjusting from one climate to another isn't difficult if you go into it with an educated and open mind (and the appropriate outerwear, of course).

Signed,
A CA to WI transplant

I have to agree with this one. I grew up in San Diego, moved to Chicago for a year, back to San Diego, and then moved here, and I seem to handle the colder temperatures better than my husband sometimes. Like another poster said, come to the UK in the winter, to get a better idea of the country, and probably the place you might want to live.

Whatever the weather, it doesn't keep people indoors! The UK is a nation of walkers!

There's no bad weather, just bad clothes 

There's no bad weather, just bad clothes 

Gotta love a Billy Connolly reference.

To the OP - I find the weather here much milder overall than either of the extremes I lived in (Phoenix metro area and southeastern MA), recent weather excluded obviously.