London autumn weather was the subject of this very short walk-and-talk in 2016. People often asked me what the weather would be like in a week, two weeks or a month, and what they should wear. On this particular day, even the view through the window would have given them the wrong impression.
From the Roberts London archive: published on 7 October 2016. In the film I describe the month as September. This is an observation from that day, rather than a current forecast.
London autumn weather: grey skies, warm air
The sky was completely grey and overcast, with rain coming and going. Looking outside, you might have expected it to be cold. Instead, I described it as T-shirt-and-shorts weather. I was walking around in a black T-shirt, talking to the camera as the street carried on around me.
I had also noticed people getting off trains wearing coats, then quickly taking them off. That was the awkward combination: warm enough to want light clothes, wet enough to make you question the choice. The clouds were telling one story and the temperature another.
What do you wear when it is warm and raining?
That was the question I ended up asking, rather than answering. The clip offers no neat packing list. It captures the frustration behind a familiar conversation about London: how do you choose an outfit when the conditions do not fit the season you had in mind?
I finished with a joke about British dressing and fashion designers. We could have all the design talent in the world, I suggested, and still struggle to produce a collection for this particular mixture of warmth and rain. It was a light-hearted complaint made while walking, with the weather providing its own example.
For another autumn outing from the same archive, join my Camden Market walk for coffee, street food and ice cream.
