'Shaun the Sheep' Named Among UK Storm Names for 2026-27 Season as Met Office Reveals New List

Britain now has a potential Storm Shaun on its official weather list. The Met Office has revealed its new UK storm names 2026 list, with Shaun the Sheep among 21 names selected for the 2026-27 season.

The character was chosen following a collaboration between the Met Office and Aardman, the British animation studio that created Shaun.

The list was announced on Tuesday, 1 September, by the Met Office, Ireland's Met Éireann and the Netherlands' KNMI. The new storm-naming season runs until 31 August 2027.

While the prospect of a named Storm Shaun has captured public imagination, weather experts note that alphabetical progression means reaching the letter S remains statistically rare during typical Atlantic seasons.

Nevertheless, the high-profile collaboration aims to modernise the way emergency safety guidance is communicated, ensuring that younger audiences and vulnerable communities engage more effectively with critical weather warnings before severe disruption strikes across the British Isles.

Shaun Wins the Public Vote

Shaun's place on the list was decided through a public vote against another Aardman favourite, Timmy. Voting opened on 19 August and closed on 21 August, with the winning character earning a place on the official 2026-27 storm list. Shaun was ultimately selected.

The collaboration was designed to make storm naming and severe-weather warnings more accessible, particularly by using familiar characters to engage audiences who might otherwise overlook weather information.

Holly Clements, Head of Warnings and Guidance at the Met Office, said storm naming helps communicate the risks of severe weather more effectively. Amy Pearson, Aardman's Director of Brand Marketing and PR, also highlighted the connection between Shaun's world and the weather.

Why Shaun Is Getting a Storm Name

Shaun's inclusion also arrives during a big year for Aardman. The studio is celebrating its 50th anniversary, while Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom is due in UK cinemas on 18 September.

The Met Office said Shaun was a particularly recognisable character with links to nature and the environment. That makes the partnership more than a novelty. It gives the Met Office a familiar character through which to start conversations about preparing for dangerous weather.

Storm Shaun Is Not Guaranteed

There is one important catch. Although Shaun is officially on the 2026-27 UK storm naming list, there is no guarantee that Storm Shaun will ever be named.

Shaun is 18th on this year's alphabetical list. The furthest the Western European storm-naming group has previously reached was Storm Lilian, the 12th named storm of the 2023-24 season, which took the list to L in August 2024. If the season does not produce enough qualifying storms to reach S, Shaun will simply remain unused.

The Names Behind the Names

Shaun may be the most recognisable addition, but the rest of the list has some remarkably personal stories.

Chloe was nominated more than 130 times, including by the mother of a five-year-old described as being 'fascinated by the weather' and able to 'create a storm by herself' when tired.

Finn was suggested for a two-year-old described by his family as 'wild and a force to be reckoned with', while Ivy honours a nine-month-old Labrador puppy affectionately called 'the absolute destructor'.

Theo was inspired by a cat that hid before thunderstorms, prompting its owner to joke that he could predict the weather.

Other names honour meteorological history. Austen commemorates Austen Nagle, the first director of the Irish Meteorological Service, while Evelyn recognises Evelyn Murphy, the first woman meteorologist to present the forecast on RTÉ television.

The 2026-27 Storm List

The full 2026-27 UK storm naming list is Austen, Boelo, Chloe, Dano, Evelyn, Finn, Gwendolyn, Heather, Ivy, Jade, Kilian, Laoise, Miriam, Nicola, Olaf, Phelim, Ruban, Shaun, Theo, Vesna and Wende.

More than 40,000 suggestions were submitted by the public, with the final list combining personal tributes, public nominations, and meteorological heritage.

Storms are named when they have the potential to cause medium or high impacts in the UK, Ireland, or the Netherlands, with strong winds as the primary consideration. Heavy rain and snow can also be factors.

So, for now, Storm Shaun exists only on the official list. But if the weather and alphabet ever reach S, Britain could find itself taking a very serious weather warning from one of its most famous fictional sheep.

If the upcoming season produces fewer qualifying amber or red warning events, Shaun will simply remain an unused entry on the official register. Regardless of whether the sheep makes landfall as a meteorological disturbance, the initiative effectively highlights the life-saving importance of early awareness of severe weather.