For something completely different, but perhaps equally strange, on Dec. 26 in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, area the temperature got up to about 80 and was very humid. This is unusual, typically we're in the 40s or 50s during December, with many nights dropping to freezing and occasional snow. When there is warm volatile weather and a cold front advancing from the northwest, the resulting "dry line" means thunderstorms and tornadoes.

Eleven (so far) dead in the region due to tornadoes last night, flash flooding, and more storms through the afternoon today.

Much of this is credited to El Niño here but I don't know if the ripple effect is, if this weather is bumping up against your normal weather patterns and causing the rain and flooding in the UK. As the article notes, El Niño "means The Little Boy, or Christ Child in Spanish. El Niño was originally recognized by fishermen off the coast of South America in the 1600s, with the appearance of unusually warm water in the Pacific Ocean. The name was chosen based on the time of year (around December) during which these warm waters events tended to occur." Weather is global and doesn't respect political boundaries, but we tend to look at it as a regional thing, predicted by our local weather casters, not viewing the big picture.

Surprise, surprise!