Shock of 1976

The summer of 1976 was the driest in more than 350 years and 50 years later, one then teenager turned historian is reminding us of the politics and music that exploded on to the culture as a nation sweltered.

- BY JACKIE ANNETT

Christopher Sandford, then a 19-yearold Cambridge University student recalls in his book, 1976: The Year That Scorched, when temperatures in July hit 35.9C and thermometers registered 30C for weeks with some areas going 45 days without rain.

Now 69, Brit Christopher, who lives in the US, remembers it as a year of phenomenal contrasts, saying "Bombs were going off regularly because of the IRA and yet strangely enough, right in the middle of this turbulence, there was an incredible heatwave.

"There were sad times, but also amusing ones. Times were hard - there was an economic crisis and workers were striking. This was set against a soundtrack of The Sex Pistols and Abba that brought moments of light." Such was the spiralling comedy and tragedy of that year, when ex-professional footballer turned MP Denis Howell was appointed drought minister, he showed reporters how he was conserving water by sharing baths with his wife, Brenda.

But the year had begun with a storm before the heatwave arrived. Mirror readers would have opened their January papers to news of winds of 110mph sweeping over East Anglia, flooding of coastal streets and rail and air traffic coming to a standstill.

The Old Vic Theatre in London was damaged when scaffolding crashed into the foyer, killing 23 people, and the roof of a stand at Stoke City football ground blew off.

Just a couple of days before the heatwave officially began that June, Christopher remembers the England vs West. Indies cricket match being called off because of rain.

"I was a big cricket fan," he tells the Mirror. "I remember going to Lords on June 19 and it started to drizzle before play. It wasn't torrential rain, but it didn't stop and eventually we were sent home without a penny in compensation.