...to think that we Brits would generally be happier and nicer if we had a warmer climate?

[SpeedyGonzalez]

You know what it's like: the sun comes out and suddenly everyone's cheerful, open, positive and friendly. Then autumn starts to creep in and it all evaporates. Once winter arrives, we're doomed.

I always notice the stark contrast between us and people in hotter climes - obviously I'm making huge generalisations here, but strangers seem to be more open and less grumpy, less whingy/ irritated by insignificant things such as one's child standing in their way for half a nanosecond or a train arriving a quarter of a second late. Complaining is sort of a national sport here, isn't it?!

Obviously, once you get to know British folks we're utterly marvellous and the salt of the earth, but sometimes all that loveliness seems to be hidden under a thick, crusty facade. Is it purely weather-related? Is there in fact a sunny, hot country where everyone's permanently pissed off? Am I talking utter bollocks?

Agree not hotter just sunnier, we are in the west of Scotland and I hate the constant rain, the damp and grey weather.

But we go mad at a bit of sun and everyone moans its too hot.

I like a nice cold but sunny day.

I'd like 72 degrees every day, sunshine from 6am until nightfall, and a light gentle rain every night while I'm in bed.

But I'd probably get bored of it within a month!

Hmmm,not sure.

During the heavy snow earlier this year, everyone in my village seemed nicer. People were stopping and talking to DS in the street about how he was liking the snow and was it the first time he'd seen it. People were knocking on elderly neighbour's doors to check they were ok/ not needing stuff. Warmed the cockles of my blackened heart, it did.

I reckon the hours of sunlight are the issue - we cheer up in the summer and get a bit down in the winter (more so in the Scandinavian countries). But on average - we all get the same amount of sun (hours of daylight) in a year - it is just ours it concentrated in the summer, whereas more eqautorial places have it more evenly spread throughout the year.

I personally don't like the long dark winter, but also don't cope well with heat - I am grumpier in the winter, but also grumpy when it gets hot in the summer . I tend to perk up a bit in spring and autumn.

I suffer with SAD but even on winter days that are crisp and sunny, I feel more optimistic and generally better. The greyness is very depressing and de-motivating.

Crappy weather shapes the national psyche and I'd say the 'turned out nice again' and 'might brighten up later' mentality means that deep down we're actually quite optimistic. Knowing to carry umbrellas on even sunny days means we're good planners and prepared for adversity. And in a place that never gets either overly hot or overly cold by global standards (and certainly not swept away in a monsoon or hurricane) we're more confident about the future!

def agree,what gets me is some health expert saying how folk in Australia etc are so healthy and be like them,well sorry but we don't get the weather for all the outdoor stuff and eat barbi and salad.I like my winter stoge,keeps me warm and happy

I don't think it's the UK weather per se (is that right??) that makes people grumpy - it's the unpredictability of it. ie you can't plan anything, without the chance of it being ruined by the weather.

I prefer colder weather, but believe I'm in the minority.

I don't know about grumpiness but the levels of depression in hotter countries have been shown to be lower than colder ones.

Ah, but there would be more crime if the UK wre hoter.

Have you noticed there are more police helicopters out in the summer than winter?

And look at Miami and south Africa. Crime ridden I tell ya'!

crime rates go up in the winter don't they?

Do they?

I thought burglars stayed at home when it was rainy and cold.

Brits would not be Brits without the ever-changing weather. What would we talk about?

Today it was a gorgeous autumn day where I live - crisp, sunny, cool, all that malarkey - and a bus driver flashed his lights and waved at my enchanted 2yo on the way back from nursery. Given that the bus drivers in my town are usually miserable bastards one and all, I was quite impressed :)

We think we would, but we wouldn't.

People moan, they get what they want, they moan.

Last Winter I had a big snow ball fight with a Brazilian who had never seen snow before. We did not know each other, but had a great 10 mins.

Oh, I won snowball fight of course being a gritty Northerner.

nothing makes me more grumpy than being too hot - you may see everyone being happy and fluffy but i see london in a heat wave as a mass of barely suppressed murderous rage.

i like the cold, and live on the east coast of scotland because i like blue skies and sun of which there's plenty here.

sweetkitty fluffles

A few weeks back it was 18C, no more, and no kidding, this Scots guy pulls his collar and goes:

"Its a wee bit tropical today isn't it ?" :o