This may well be the most stupid Guardian headline in over 24 hours: "2012: the year Britain's weather turned dangerous"

2012: the year Britain's weather turned dangerous | The Guardian

Record rainfall led to widespread flooding, killing nine people, ruining crops and costing the country billions

Britain's worst storms - Telegraph

26 November 1703 - A catastrophic 80 mph hurricane ripped across East Anglia, decimating villages from Northamptonshire to Suffolk and killing between 8,000 and 15,000 people. Hundreds of vessels were sunk, homes destroyed and animals drowned in floodwater. It has since become known as the worst storm in British history.
...
31 January and 1 February 1953 - Hurricane-force winds combined with high spring tides to cause a disastrous storm surge along the east coast. More than 300 people died, including 133 who were forced to abandon the Princess Victoria ferry east of Belfast. Nearly 24,000 houses were damaged and 72,845 hectares (180,000 acres) flooded, while thousands of trees were blown down in Scotland.