On Boxing Day 1962, it began snowing across Merseyside - with the cold spell lasting until March 1963.
Blizzards lasting for days, gale force winds and an average temperature of -2.1 degrees celsius saw what was soon nicknamed 'Big Freeze' blanket the area in snow for months on end.
From December 22, 1962 to February 12, 1963, neither Anfield nor Goodison Park hosted a single Premier League game.
The only action came in a few FA cup ties which only happened because of monumental effort to clear pitches with heavy machinery.
It was even cold enough that the sea at Southport froze over during the long winter.
Cars and vehicles were stranded in the heavy snow as blizzards continued hit, grounding planes and leaving towns without electricity as snow drifts were around 20ft deep.
'The Big Freeze' interrupted life, with snow on the ground for 62 consecutive days.
On New Year’s Eve, 1962, as a blizzard swept the nation, The Times reported: "Roads were impassable at hundreds of points, many towns and villages were cut off, railways were out of action at many places or struggling against long delays on other sections, and the airports were unable till late in the day to offer landing or take-off."
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Vegetable prices shot up by as much as 30% as well, as crops froze in the ground.
It was so cold, mini icebergs appeared across Merseyside, and park lakes froze so much they were perfectly safe to ice skate on.
In the more rural areas, snowploughs were needed to clear the snow and allow access to towns and villages because the snow was higher than hedges in places.
Whilst the nation was frozen by the Big Freeze, the sporting calendar was upended as well.
The FA Cup third round was scheduled for Saturday 5th of January, but took 66 days to complete.
Everton were one of the few clubs in the country to have under-pitch heating, having got it in 1958, which helped them to play their FA Cup tie against Barnsley, which they won 3-0 on January 15th.
The game was still played in thick snow.
Everton would beat Swindon easily in the next round before going out in the fifth round to West Ham.
At Anfield, lacking under-pitch heating, Bill Shankly called in Mr John Flood of Queensferry.
Mr Flood was an expert on ground construction who helped prepare the game for the Wednesday cup replay.
This game against Burnley ended 1-1 on January 27th, meaning the fourth round fixture had to be replayed.
The Big Freeze was so relentless that the next month, Anfield faced the same problem when playing Burnley on February 20th.
This time Mr Shankly called in a local tractor owner with a disc harrower to split the ice that had frozen over the pitch.
Mr Shankly and the Liverpool players then set about sweeping the snow and ice away, clearing the lines.
Liverpool eventually triumphed in the game thanks to a 119th minute penalty by Ronnie Moran.
They would go on to beat Arsenal and West Ham before being knocked out in the semi-finals to Leicester City.
It wasn’t until March 6th that the country woke up without frost, finally free of the Big Freeze.
The Big Freeze remains one of the coldest winters on record, with mammoth 36 hour blizzards blanketing the country in snow.
Climate change means winters like that of 1962/3, will be increasingly uncommon.
