After a week of festive indulgence in which the primary use of water for many people has been as a mixer with a tumbler of Scotch, it is easy to overlook how much the nation relies on water.

Documents released today by the National Archives at Kew under the 30-year rule reveal that James Callaghan’s Government was so disturbed by the drought of 1976, which left Britain as dry as a Martini, that it considered even seeding rain clouds and shipping water from Norway.

But with environmentalists now swearing that the planet is getting so hot that chickens will soon be laying their eggs soft-boiled, the search for novel sources of water to keep Britain afloat during any future droughts will intensify. One solution, given the propensity of the skies to open as soon as anyone plays professional tennis in England, would be to extend the Wimbledon fortnight to a full 52 weeks (although Sir Cliff Richard may need to be contained to prevent him serenading rain-soaked Centre Court spectators with snatches of Summer Holiday all year long).

Then again, the good news about a hotter world is that the higher the mercury rises, the more that we will all sweat — though, naturally, some will sweat more than others and it is these people who will become a target for collecting water. For instance, you will find few people sweating like Tony Blair awaiting news from the cash-for-honours investigation; or Mel Gibson at a Hanukkah party; or Hillary Clinton looking at Senator Barack Obama’s poll ratings.

Another source of water, obviously, would be to collect the tears of English cricket fans. If that isn’t enough to drown the nation, we can just tap England’s Rugby Union supporters, too.