Embracing the British Summer: A Guide

This month in Southport’s Journey Magazine we write about The Summer Delusion and Making the most of it

10pm and my evening routine has now become no bedsheets, full starfish position and staring at the ceiling desperately willing a rush of cold air through the bedroom window.

This happens every year, although never gradually. There is no gentle easing into warmer weather. One minute I’m in a woolly jumper pretending I enjoy standing outside pubs with patio heaters, and the next I’m hotter than the sun and emotionally organising my entire life around the weather forecast.

Suddenly I’m trying to squeeze beer garden drinks into a Wednesday evening because “you have to make the most of it”, even though two weeks ago I was home by 8pm in fluffy socks. Everything starts becoming an occasion in summer. I find myself wandering around shops mainly for the air conditioning and somehow leaving with outdoor tablecloths, new garden cushions and brightly coloured plates that I absolutely did not need an hour earlier.

Then comes the Pinterest scrolling.

Apparently my outdoor space now needs to become a Mediterranean-inspired social haven, despite the fact it spent most of March holding a slightly broken plant pot and an abandoned bag of compost. One glimpse of sunshine and suddenly I’m looking at outdoor lanterns, fancy wine goblets and “alfresco hosting ideas” as though I regularly throw elegant garden parties instead of eating crisps on a folding chair while shouting “mind the seagull” every few minutes.

Even working feels different. The second the temperature climbs above about 18 degrees, I start attempting to answer emails outside with an oat iced latte beside me, squinting at my laptop screen while trying to convince myself I’ve become one of those people who effortlessly works from the garden.

And despite the hay fever tablets, the inability to sleep properly and the nightly routine of opening every window in the house, there is something lovely about seeing the town come alive in warmer weather. Driving through Lord Street into Birkdale, the cafés suddenly look full again, people are sat outside raising glasses at the end of the day and everyone just seems that little bit happier for it.

So here’s to British summer arriving all at once, changing our moods, routines and spending habits within the space of a weekend, and convincing us all that a folding garden chair is not only comfortable, but apparently the height of luxury.

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