You know summer is here when…

Welcome to British summer (Photo credit: DieselDemon)

The glorious weather has led to us all flocking outside over the Bank Holiday weekend. Us Brits are obsessed with the sun and as soon as those rays emerge from behind a cloud, our behaviour seems to drastically change. There are certainly telltale signs that British summer has begun when these things start to happen.

1. Men will walk around with their tops off. Whether it’s the supermarket or walking down the street, men will always take their shirts off and no, it’s never the gorgeous ones that do it, its always the overweight builders at the end of the road, or the one who still thinks he’s twenty five and has the physique of a body builder.

2. People will start applying sun cream like it’s going out of fashion. It may only be 15 degrees outside but everyone will start smearing on the sun cream as if we are in some sort of Spanish heatwave and their skin will become frazzled as soon as they step outside.

This lady is all about staying safe in the sun (Photo credit: miss pupik)

3. Women will change their entire wardrobe. Flip flops, maxi dresses and strappy tops will all be dug out from the back of the wardrobe. Those woman who can usually be seen in dowdy attire for 51 weeks of the year suddenly transform into brightly coloured ‘goddesses’.

4. Social media will become inundated with posts about the sun and how everyone is ‘getting out in it’. Tweets and statuses will appear about peoples’ sun experiences and there then will be the persistent groans from those who are stuck indoors sulking that they couldn’t be ‘getting out in it’.

5. Despite the fact you may be sat outside in the evening, shivering, wearing multiple layers under a patio heater, it is imperative to have a BBQ. At the first glimmer of sunshine men will use this opportunity to prove their masculinity by cooking outside. Woman stay well aware, any help will be dismissed immediately.

6. Inevitable tanning disasters will make an appearance. Sunglasses rings, red noses, peculiar burn marks and not to mention those who have gone a little OTT with the fake tan!

Bring back the rain (Photo credit: ChodHound)

7. People start believing they are in Ground Force or even Alan Titchmarsh himself. The sun will bring out the expert gardener within. People, usually those over the age of 45, will start weeding, planting and generally turning their garden into a landscaped masterpiece.  Don’t forget the obligatory water feature and mosaic tiles.

8. The inevitable gripes will begin that the air is too sticky and humid and that we could do with some rain (if only to help save our expertly cut lawns) . Us Brits are never satisfied, we complain when it’s too cold and miserable and we complain that it’s too hot after more than a weekend of sunshine. Typical.