After months spent indoors, living out some kind of Groundhog day hell during the longest lockdown period ever, Monday morning marked a positive step in the right direction as shops, salons and pubs reopened their doors in England. 

As people rubbed their palms together in glee at the thought of their 11am beer garden booking, morning mop chop and first Primark trip of 2021, little did they know, the ever-changeable British weather had other plans. 

Yes that’s right, on opening our curtains this morning, many saw it had been snowing. In mid-April. A matter of days after we had a mini heatwave that saw us dust off our summer shorts. We’re officially being trolled by mother nature. 

The weekend was already snow-laced in parts of the North, while this morning, southern parts of England and much of Wales have been dealt a happy hand of rain, sleet and snow, “making way for sunny intervals and scattered showers later today”, according to the Met Office. Elsewhere, it’s a mixed bag of sunny periods and isolated wintry showers.

In short: it’s bloody freezing, so it’s just as well the beer gardens have opened then for that nice, ice-cold pint. 

For those embracing their First Proper Haircut of 2021, it’s been a similar story with freezing cold queues to get a much-needed mop chop and a nice combination of wind and sleet to make it all fluffy again afterwards.

Elsewhere, outdoor fitness classes have been blighted by snow while punters queued on the high street for JD Sports, Primark and TK Maxx in the freezing cold. (Indoor shopping centres are looking very appealing right now.)

With lots of measures easing today, we’re expecting beer gardens and outdoor dining areas to be busier than ever. Because one thing’s for sure, nothing comes between Brits and their little pleasures – not even the weather.

Just make sure you wrap up warm if you do head out.