Not many years ago, when driving the cab around London looking for a fare, you could tell the American tourist by the gentleman’s white gabardine raincoat, either worn or draped across his left arm.
Now climate change has made summer in the capital drier and with advanced technology, making forecasting more accurate.
Back in the day, we had countdowns for sending a rocket to the moon; listening to the pips on the talking clock, and counting down the seconds up to the New Year.
We didn’t get a countdown to the weather, just Michael Fish reassuring the viewers that the woman who phoned to say it was getting a bit breezy outside, or the BBC weather girl suggesting you bring an umbrella with you tomorrow.
No. I’m talking about American weather, this is the country that has its own dedicated television weather channel (in my opinion the most entertaining station to watch when holidaying with our colonial cousins).
Those clever people at Apple have updated their weather app. Living in a country like Britain, where the weather is a near-national obsession and changes within the course of an hour, here we would say it’s pi**ing down, but the Americans frequently use the word precipitation.
And this is where the weather app comes in. Now I know to the minute when rain – sorry, precipitation – will fall.
Beyond telling you to bring an umbrella or sunglasses the graphics include wind, UV index and barometric pressure. Alongside this, you now get full-screen weather maps, high-resolution images that animate the progress of rain and clouds, air quality, and temperature — sort of like your own personal weather assistant.
Or you could go with the tried and tested looking out of the window before leaving home.
On 14 November 1666, an experimental blood transfusion between two dogs took place observed by Samuel Pepys, one of first successful in 17th century 
In 1906 Messrs Spillberg, Nabian and Aaroris of Nelson Street, Stepney were convicted of smuggling saccharin which then was considered a drug
Liverpool Street’s Great Eastern Hotel (now the Andaz) opened in 1884 and was at one time the only hotel in the City
Builders working on the Builders working on the Bakerloo Line are reported to have suffered from the bends while tunnelling under the Thames
During World War II and the Nazi occupation of Holland Queen Wilhelmina moved her Dutch government into her London home at 77 Chester Square, Belgravia
The Cliff Richard musical Summer Holiday had a bus bound for ‘London to the South of France via Dover Paris’ most was shot in LT’s bus works Aldenham
Museum of London tracing the capital’s history from Prehistoric times to the present day is the largest urban history museum in the world
In 1966 actor, bodybuilder and politician Arnold Schwarzenegger lived at 335 Romford Road Ilford as a guest of bodybuilder Charles Bennett
The first section of the Underground ran between Paddington and Farringdon Street. The same section now forms part of the Circle, Hammersmith & City, and Metropolitan lines
Miles Coverdale who supervised the production of the first complete bible in English in 1535 was once Rector of St Magnus the Martyr
When the Millennium Dome was built, a Blue Peter capsule was buried containing amongst other items a spice girls cd, a tamagotchi and a Blue Peter badge!
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