..I see this pattern emerging. Winter = cold weather. It took me a few years to figure it out but I got there in the end.
Weather is coming from the east & north, so we get cold european weather. When it comes from the SW, we get warm air from the north atlantic drift, but this is apparently in decline due to changing atmospheric conditions and will eventully just turn right into the med.
The last Ice age was less than 20,000 years ago. Scary really!