It’s finally happening. To the glee of the rest of the world, Great Britain is sinking into the ocean like some sort of beans-on-toast-fuelled Atlantis. Or that’s what you’d be forgiven for thinking, seeing as the streets are flooded, the riverbanks are breaking, and there’s rainfall of Biblical proportions.
For more than 40 days, it has rained in the UK. That’s every day so far in 2026. January was remarkably wet (especially in southwest England, eastern Scotland and Northern Ireland). Cornwall had its wettest January on record, while across the UK, 26 weather stations set new monthly records for highest January rainfall.
But this month might be even worse. As of Sunday (February 8), the UK has seen 37% of the expected average rainfall for the whole of February. In England, that number’s even higher, having already reached 59% of its monthly average, and in southern England, that number jumps to 72%.
While life may look a little brighter further north, where northern England has so far seen only 39%, and Scotland has had 21%, Aberdeen has reached 180% of its February average. Others to have exceeded expectations are Kincardineshire (152%), Angus (130%), the Isle of Wight (108%) and Worcestershire (103%).
But if you’re sick of the rain, just be glad you don’t live in one of the places that have non-stop rain this year (December 31, 2025, to February 8, 2026). North Wyke in Devon, Cardinham (Bodmin) in Cornwall, Astwood Bank in Hereford, and Worcester have all logged 40 consecutive wet days in 2026.
Why is it so wet?
According to the Met Office, a strong, southerly jet stream, steering low‑pressure systems towards the UK, has not only brought rain sweeping in from the Atlantic, but also strong winds and wintry hazards. While slow-clearing weather fronts have left many places in the country, sort of, ‘stuck’ in time.
“Cold plunges of air across North America have strengthened the temperature gradient across the northwest Atlantic, energising the jet, while a blocking high over northern Europe has prevented weather fronts from clearing, causing them to stall over the UK,” said Chief Forecaster Neil Armstrong.
When will the rain stop?
The UK has experienced little relief from the rainfall in 2026, but Steven Keates, Deputy Chief Forecaster, predicts “colder, more settled conditions towards the end of the week, with Saturday looking like a fine day for many.” But don’t pack up the umbrellas and raincoats just yet…
“The next set of Atlantic weather fronts looks set to move in from the west at the end of the weekend.” Between February 15 and February 24, expect “Showers or longer spells of rain” and “Some heavy rain”. Looking ahead (February 25 to March 11), there’s “a risk of some heavy rain”, but also “drier, more settled weather”. So who knows? Maybe the country really will sink before it stops raining.