THE weather has caused a storm - literally - over the past few weeks.

Column inches and screen space, if you've followed the latest weather news and checked out the forecasts online, have been dominated by blizzards that caused commuter disruption, school closures and general inconvenience to all.

Spring is a season when, according to the calendar (and the clocks) we 'spring forward' this weekend casting off the gloomy winter cloak and spring cleaning our homes.

We can also look forward to longer days and spending more time outside in warmer weather - well we can live in hope!

But we must also remember that while Spring is a sign that the seasons are changing for the better and colour is beginning to come back into our gardens - snow and cold climates aren't as unseasonal as we may think.

According to the ancient proverb March 'comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb' suggesting the expectation of bad weather before the emergence of milder climes.

Certainly many will remember the times it has snowed as late as April. My late great grandmother often reminded me 'Ne'er cast a clout till May is out' - another ancient proverb associated with keeping that extra layer of clothing on.

A Met Office spokesman explains: "Although “Meteorological Spring” officially starts on 1st March each year, it is not unusual to get cold spells during March. Obviously we have had two cold spells this March. The last time we had very cold weather in March was in 2013 when snow was fairly widespread around the country.

"Snow in April and May is fairly common over the Highlands of Scotland but fairly unusual at lower levels and further south. The latest recorded settling snow was on 2nd June 1975 when 16cm was recorded at Baltasound in Shetland. The coldest March temperature ever recorded was -22.8 on 14th March 1958 when = -22,8 Celsius was recorded at Logie in Aberdeenshire. Average March daily maximum temperatures are around 10 Celsius in the south, and 8 Celsius in the north."

Could climate change be having an impact? "Climate change is believed to be raising average global temperatures across the world including the UK but normal large variations in temperature and weather make this impossible to observe in any one place at any one time," says the Met Office spokesman.

While there is some evidence climate change is leading to increased moisture content in the air in the UK which may be increasing rainfall at times, there is no evidence suggesting climate change leads to longer winters.

Looking ahead to Easter, according to Met Office we're expecting colder than average weather from Wednesday into the Easter weekend with potential for night and morning frosts in Yorkshire and the North East. Expect wet, showery and cold weather with some showers potentially briefly turning to snow over the Pennines and the Moors above 300 metres, although they are expected to fall as rain in towns and cities.

"Easter snow is unusual but not unheard of, particularly when Easter falls early as it does this year. Easter in 2014 saw snow in many parts of the UK. Some snow was also observed in Yorkshire well after Easter in 2016," says the Met Office spokesman.

Dipping into our archives our nostalgia writer and researcher, Odele Ayres, discovered this image of the aftermath of the severe gale force winds which caused devastation to parts of Bradford in March 1968.

According to the T&A report at the time, 70mph gusts dislodged 60 tons of coping stones at a mill in the city causing commuter chaos as demolition workers began the clear-up operation at the former Kassapians Warehouse at the bottom of Leeds Road, Bradford.

Almost the entire Bradford central area was jammed with vehicles during the early rush hour as part of the carriageway was covered with debris.