One of the wettest, coldest Augusts

Last month brought the coldest temperature recorded in August for 23 years – and a complete absence of "hot days", figures showed yesterday.

While several "notably" cold nights were recorded last week, by the end of the month forecasters said there had not been a single day when the mercury rose above 27C.

Statistics released by MeteoGroup showed the lowest temperature recorded last month was 12.8C in Edgbaston, Birmingham, the coldest since 1987. Conditions were notably bad towards the latter part of the month when there was widespread wet weather. Rainfall in England and Wales was almost one-and-a-half times the average amount, at 106.2mm. In the last 100 years, only 22 Augusts have been wetter.