March is traditionally a month of meteorological uncertainty — rain one moment, frost the next and a perpetual debate over when is too soon to pack away the winter coat.
This year, however, it defied expectations and produced record levels of sunshine. Provisional data from the Met Office shows that England basked in its brightest March since records began in 1910, with 185.8 hours of sunshine, comfortably beating the previous high of 171.7 hours set in 1929.
The UK experienced its third sunniest March, while Wales enjoyed its second brightest. It was also a dry month as a persistent high-pressure system keeping rain-bearing weather fronts at bay. Only Scotland recorded more than half of its average amount of rainfall.
The River Cam in Cambridge and, below, the Thames in Oxfordshire
JOE GIDDENS/PA
On Tuesday the Met Office issued
