Fishermen and women sitting under huge green umbrellas by the river in the pouring rain or the sweltering sun is a common perception, but what difference does the weather really make to the sport. Rodney Cauldron of the National Federation of Anglers says "‘coarse’ fish are particularly sensitive to the weather."
There are three main types
of fishing in the UK and each use different techniques and are affected
by weather conditions differently. ‘Coarse’ fishing on rivers and
lakes fish for ‘ciprinid’ fish such as roach, bream or carp amongst
many others. ‘Fly’ fishing involves fishing for ‘salmonid’ fish
such as trout or salmon using artificially tied flies. Whilst sea
fishing occurs in coastal waters for sea fish.
Although you might think that lovely sunny weather is the best sort to fish in, not so: fish don't respond so well. The best sort of weather is warm, overcast with a slight wind. In hot weather fish often seem to stay away from bait and get more sluggish, so fishing either in the morning before eight or after six in the afternoon gets better results. "Above 30 inches on the barometer and fish just don’t seem to respond to the bait as well" says David Henderson, the director of the Salmon and Trout Association (Scotland). Sudden temperature changes can have a similar effect. 
It doesn’t blow underwater - fishing in the wind
"A nice breeze breaks the surface and conceals the angler with their line and bait - the fish have a smaller window of vision" says Mr Henderson. Inland fishermen generally find that it is more fruitful to fish into the wind so the food on the surface of the water is blown towards them. Some fish actually like the wind: shoal fish such as such as bream feed more when there are waves, according to Mr Coldron. There is even a wind related fishing proverb: ‘When the wind is east the fish bite least, when the wind is west the fish bite best.’
"The number one thing in coarse fishing is to present the bait properly, in a manner that won’t spook the fish" say Mr Coldron, although this also applies to fly fishing. If the current flows in one direction a strong wind blowing the other way could carry the bait against the flow and the fish would find this unnatural.
Mr Standen of the Sea Angling Centre in Queenborough, Kent mentions two ways in which the wind affects sea anglers. Firstly fishing is a leisure activity and large swell and a driving wind do not make for a particularly pleasant day on a boat or beach. And in Kent the fish seem to bite less in an easterly wind.
Fish don’t shiver - fishing in the cold
Fishing in the cold brings challenges all of its own. Coarse fish go deeper and become dormant in the winter because of the scarcity of food and to avoid heat loss. They often tend to seek out holes and depressions in lake floors. Although sometimes a winter warm spell or a fisherman breaking the ice on a pond will cause fish to come nearer to the surface in search of food. 
Fly fishing stops during the winter trout and salmon spawning
season. Sea Anglers however may find that fish are more active in
the cold winter weather. The effects of the change in the weather
over the seasons act slower on the sea, so the effects of winter
cooling on the fish takes longer.
It is possible to fly-fish in the spring time. The trout season starts on 15 March, and Salmon season starts in February. "The fish lie lower but they can still take" says Mr Henderson, who goes on to say "a snow storm can actually raise the temperature, so fish would be more inclined to move and chase the bait. But the bait must still be presented close to them."
It’s already wet - fishing in the rain
Rain can mean different things in different areas. In Scottish rivers fed by flood waters or ‘spate’ fed, fishermen might find fishing is good at first, but gets worse as the strong flow pushes the bait higher in the water - above the fish. Whilst thunder and lightning scares fish away and a highly conductive carbon fibre fishing rod makes an ideal lightning conductor.
Scottish sea trout will respond in wild rain and wind as long as it is westerly, according to Mr Henderson. Whilst rain means estuaries become flooded with fresh water so sea anglers find the salt water fish go further out to sea says Mr Standen. And "fog" he says "brings fish closer".
The Chinese go fishing after retirement - watching the river flow. In Britain whether you are sitting and watching the world go by, a keen amateur or a highly skilled professional angler the weather will be a vital concern. Fish, anglers and probably even tin cans at the bottom of rivers rise or sink on the vagaries of the British Weather.
Useful links
National Federation of Anglers
Welsh Salmon and Trout Organisation
National Federation of Sea Anglers
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