all set for a British summer....

April was the warmest for 350 years and May's been unusually dry. As usual, the media is awash with speculation about what's to come (another 'barbecue summer') and concern about what will happen if it doesn't rain soon (the South East is drier than Spain). There's talk of the summer of '76 when the country sizzled, the reservoirs ran dry and road surfaces cracked in the heat.

My friends who are gardeners are spending all their time watering, torn between their delight in early crops and their anxiety about what will happen if it doesn't rain soon. And there is real concern about wildlife and the impact on food prices.

Meanwhile, for many of us, the warm, dry weather has been a bonus. We've basked in the sun and warmth, so welcome after the long, cold winter and last year's 'barbecue summer' (the less said about that the better!).

So I can only assume that the gardeners' rain dances paid off today. As I sat down to open the boxes containing my long-awaited new range of beach baskets, it started to rain!

Beach baskets