Official - the wettest Autumn on record

Weather experts confirmed today what most of Britain already suspected - this Autumn was the wettest since records began almost 300 years ago.

Weather experts confirmed today what most of Britain already suspected - this Autumn was the wettest since records began almost 300 years ago.

With three days left to the end of autumn, forecasters said more rain was on its way and rainfall would exceed all record-breaking predictions.

The previous record for the wettest autumn in England and Wales was in 1852 when 17.94 inches fell - 75 per cent more than the normal rainfall.

But the Millennial autumn has smashed that with 77 per cent more rainfall than average, and a massive 18.11 inches falling.

Rainfall records covering England and Wales date back to 1727.

The new record for rainfall comes after the country has been battered by rain and storms, with widespread flooding across many counties.

Severe flood warnings have been in place, in some areas for many weeks, and householders across the country have suffered deluges of water in their homes.

A spokesman from the Met Office confirmed that England and Wales had experienced the wettest autumn since its records began in 1766.

Official figures from the Hadley Centre for Climate Change and Research showed that up to November 25, at 0900 GMT, 18ins of rain had fallen.