During the ‘big freeze’ of 1962-63, snow was as high as hedges and the sea at Southport froze over
This week, Merseyside has been in the grip of an Arctic blast, with plunging temperatures bringing heavy snow and biting cold winds. Many of us will have struggled to get to work or school this morning as snow and ice caused the road network to seize up, causing delays and disruption.
If you think things are bad now though, spare a thought for the poor souls who lived through the legendary “big freeze” of 1962-63. That winter, Merseyside was brought to a standstill for more than two months as deep snow blanketed the country.
Snow started to fall on Boxing Day 1962 and the cold spell didn’t let up until early March 1963. For 62 consecutive days, snow was on the ground, with the average temperature -2.1 degrees Celsius. At the time, most homes didn’t have central heating, and some only had outdoor toilets.
Roads were impassable, cars and vehicles were left stranded, towns and villages were cut off, and railways were out of action as a result of the snow, which was reported to be around 20ft deep in some places. At one point, it was so cold that the sea at Southport froze over. Mini icebergs appeared across Merseyside, and park lakes were covered in ice.
Vegetable prices shot up by as much as 30% as crops froze in the ground. Pneumatic drills were reportedly used to dig up potatoes and carrots. In rural areas, snowploughs were needed to clear the snow and allow access to towns and villages because the snow was higher than hedges in places.
Whilst the nation was frozen, the sporting calendar was upended as well. The FA Cup third round was scheduled for Saturday 5th of January, but took 66 days to complete. Some matches in the FA Cup were rescheduled ten or more times.
Everton had acquired under-pitch heating in 1958, so were able to play their FA Cup tie against Barnsley on January 15, 1963, a game which they won 3-0. The match was still played in thick snow. Everton went on to beat Swindon easily in the next round before going out in the fifth round to West Ham.
Anfield, meanwhile, lacked under-pitch heating, so Bill Shankly called in Mr John Flood of Queensferry to help tackle the snow. Mr Flood was an expert on ground construction who helped prepare the game for the Wednesday cup replay. This game against Burnley ended 1-1 on January 27, meaning the fourth round fixture had to be replayed.
The Big Freeze was so relentless that the next month, Anfield faced the same problem when playing Burnley on February 20. This time the club called in a local tractor owner with a disc harrower to split the ice that had frozen over the pitch. The Liverpool manager and his players then set about sweeping the snow and ice away, clearing the lines.
It wasn’t until March 6, 1963 that the country woke up without frost, finally free of the Big Freeze. When the thaw arrived, a backlog of football fixtures had to be rearranged. The Football League season was extended by four weeks from its original finishing date of 27 April.
The winter of 1962-63 remains one of the coldest winters on record, and made its mark on pop culture. An episode of Call the Midwife was set during that bitter winter, and Dream Academy’s 1985 single ‘Life in a Northern Town’ includes the lyrics “In winter 1963/It felt like the world would freeze”.
