The Big Freeze of 1962-63: A Harsh Winter’s Impact on Merseyside’s Communities, Economy, and Sports
Premier League Museum Admin 
Everton goodison park
During the winter of 1962-63, Merseyside experienced a severe cold spell known as the “big freeze”. Snow began to fall on Boxing Day 1962 and the cold weather persisted until early March 1963. For 62 consecutive days, snow was on the ground, with the average temperature being -2.1 degrees Celsius.
A local resident recalled, “Most homes didn’t have central heating, and some only had outdoor toilets. It was so cold that the sea at Southport froze over. Mini icebergs appeared across Merseyside, and park lakes were covered in ice.”
The cold weather also had a significant impact on the local economy. “Vegetable prices shot up by as much as 30% as crops froze in the ground. Pneumatic drills were reportedly used to dig up potatoes and carrots,” said a local farmer. In rural areas, snowploughs were needed to clear the snow and allow access to towns and villages because the snow was higher than hedges in places.
The “big freeze” also disrupted the sporting calendar. An Everton player recounted, “Some matches in the FA Cup were rescheduled ten or more times. We had acquired under-pitch heating in 1958, so we were able to play our FA Cup tie against Barnsley on January 15, 1963, a game which we won 3-0. The match was still played in thick snow.”
Meanwhile, Anfield lacked under-pitch heating, so Bill Shankly, the then manager of Liverpool FC, called in Mr John Flood of Queensferry to help tackle the snow.
Mr Flood, an expert on ground construction, said, “I helped prepare the game for the Wednesday cup replay. The club called in a local tractor owner with a disc harrower to split the ice that had frozen over the pitch. The Liverpool manager and his players then set about sweeping the snow and ice away, clearing the lines.”
It wasn’t until March 6, 1963 that the country woke up without frost, finally free of the Big Freeze. When the thaw arrived, a backlog of football fixtures had to be rearranged. The Football League season was extended by four weeks from its original finishing date of 27 April. The winter of 1962-63 remains one of the coldest winters on record, and made its mark on pop culture. An episode of Call the Midwife was set during that bitter winter, and Dream Academy’s 1985 single ‘Life in a Northern Town’ includes the lyrics “In winter 1963/It felt like the world would freeze”.
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