Longer Days, Snowdrops and Loads to Do
Between New Year's and Good Friday there is not a single Bank Holiday in the UK. People compensate by finding their own ways of having fun - and February is just crammed with festivals and special events.UK Climate Averages for February
A bit dryer and about twice as much sunshine as January - not to mention significantly longer days - make up for the fact that the temperature is about the same - still wintry and windy. Here are the 30 year averages, to 2000, from the UK Met Office to help you decide what to pack:England
- High - 44°F (6.9°C)
- Low - 34°F (1C)
- Average daily hours of sunshine - 2.41
- Average monthly rainfall - 2.36" (60.1mm)
- High - 41°F (5.2°C)
- Low - 32°F (-0.1°C)
- Average daily hours of sunshine - 2.075
- Average monthly rainfall - 4.86" (123.6mm)
- High - 44°F (6.6°C)
- Low - 34°F (1.1°C)
- Average daily hours of sunshine - 2.26
- Average monthly rainfall - 4.48" (114mm)
Check out average temperatures and rainfall throughout the year, all around the UK.
Daylight Hours
All over the UK, the hours between sunrise and sunset grow by about two hours. More time to spend sightseeing out of doors.Culture and Heritage
- Darwin Day and The Shrewsbury Darwin Festival Throughout February, Shrewsbury celebrates its famous native son with events, walks, lectures and workshops such as the Evolution Game and Monsters in Your Garden with a mini-beast safari. Toast the great man on Darwin Day, Feb. 12.
- Bath Literature Festival best novelists and poets from the UK and abroad. Annual event at the end of February (Feb. 28 to Mar. 8 2009)
- Jorvik Viking Festival Jorvik Viking Centre, York, England. Annual Viking celebration and the best way to get a hands-on experience of what it would have been like to be a Viking. Feb.18-22.
- Cornish Hurling An ancient game now only played in St. Ives on Feast Monday (Feb. 23, 2009) and St. Columb Major on Shrove Tuesday (Feb. 24. 2009) . The mayor throws a silver ball from a town wall. It is passed in a rough and tumble scrum through the village and whoever has possession at noon receives a traditional reward of five shillings from the mayor.
- Olney Pancake Race , Market place, Olney, Buckinghamshire, Shrove Tuesday, Feb. 24 2009. "Housewives" in aprons run a 400 meter dash.
Sports
- Scottish National Badminton Championships Beginning of Feb.
- English Badminton Nationals Beginning of Feb.
- Scottish Point-to-Point Race Meetings Steeplechase racing by amateur riders over three miles on courses set on farmland.
- Six Nations Rugby International Matches between England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Italy and France, through February and early March. UK events at Murrayfield, Edinburgh; Twickenham, London; and Millennium Stadium, Cardiff.
- Ski Touring Surgery Courses National Outdoor Training Centre, Aviemore, Scotland, Feb.9-10.
Music and Performing Arts
- Cheltenham Folk Festival Traditional music, street artists, workshops, foodstalls. Annual event at town hall and other venues. Feb. 13-15, 2009.
- Glasgow Film Festival Feb. 12-22, 2009
- Leicester Comedy Festival UK's longest running comedy festival. Annual event. Feb. 6-15 2009
- Showzam Blackpool's half-term festival of circus, magic and new variety. Feb. 13-22, 2008.
Food and Drink
- Derby Winter Beer Festival February 4 to 6, 2010 in the Assembly Rooms, Derby Market Place.
- Chelmsford Winter Beer Festival February 4 to 6, 2010, Triangle Club, Essex County
- Pendle Beer Festival February 4-6,2010, Colne Municipal Hall, Colne, Lancashire.
- Tewksbury and Chesterfield kick off a month of beer festivals all over the UK. Check the Campaign for Real Ales website for all 19.
- Kingussie Food on Film Festival Film, food and music are all part of the party between Feb. 6-7 at Kingussie on the edge of the Cairngorms in Scotland.
- Rye Bay Scallop Festival The Sussex town celebrates its catch of the finest scallops in the UK. Feb. 20-28.
