GB. Norfolk. East Anglia. The 1976 Drought. East Anglia is hit by drought, farmers suffer loss of crops, and wait for rain. (First story in England shot by Peter Marlow for The French Photo Agency SYGMA.)

A farm worker shows what the height of the corn should be in a 'normal' year.

The 1976 United Kingdom heat wave led to the hottest summer average temperature in the UK since records began. At the same time, the country suffered a severe drought. It was easily the driest, sunniest and warmest summer in the 20th century. Only a few places registered more than half their average summer rainfall. The drought was at its most severe in August 1976. Parts of the south west went 45 days without any rain in July and August. In the last week of August, days after Denis Howell was appointed 'Minister for Drought', severe thunderstorms brought rain to some places for the first time in weeks. September and October 1976 were both very wet months, bringing to an end the great drought of 1975–1976