Weather forecasters said that August was expected to be the least sunny in England since records began in 1912 - and the outlook for the next few days was 'horrendous.'
John Hammond, a Met Office spokesman, said that England had just 115.9 hours of sunshine over the month of August - just 63 per cent of the average amount seen in England - 184.1 hours.
It was also the sixth wettest August since records began, according to provisional figures.
Between June 1 and August 26, 12.5 inches of rain fell on the UK - 40 per cent more than the average 8.9 inches.
In August alone more than five inches of rain have been recorded already, making it one of the wettest in history and the least sunny since records began.