The storm cost a total of 18 lives and an estimated £1 billion in repairs and clear-up costs. Hundreds of people were injured.
Around 15 million trees were lost and hundreds of thousands of homes were without power for more than 24 hours.
By the time most people went to bed, exceptionally strong winds had not even been mentioned in national radio and TV weather broadcasts.
Michael Fish's famous line that there wouldn't be a hurricane was actually correct. He was referring to a tropical cyclone in the West Atlantic.
Officially the gusts were locally hurricane force in strength but not sufficiently widespread.
According to the Met Office the last storm of similar magnitude in England occurred in 1703.