Civilized people, like Americans, have a ground hog to predict the weather. The English, by contrast, a tribal and deeply fractious people, use a saint to perform a similar function.
St Swithin (or St Swithun) is famous for the miracles he worked after death and the his feast falls today. If rain falls on St Swithin’s Bridge today, it will continue for 40 more days.
Swithun's best-known miracle was his restoration on a bridge of a basket of eggs that workmen had maliciously broken. Of stories connected with Swithun the two most famous are those of the Winchester egg-woman and Queen Emma's ordeal.
And quite the ordeal it was - she married a guy called Cnut.
...and 40 nights...
Eggs is important .