Why do the English go outdoors?

As a nation the English are obsessed with the weather.  With good cause it would seem as it is so variable and, mostly, unpleasant.  After years of endless conversations about sudden onset of rain and experience of short spells of warm sunshine sandwiched between prolonged periods of wind, rain and low temperatures why are there still outdoor performances of dramatic works?

On a warm, sunny evening with a slight 2mph breeze, a picnic in a Brighton cemetery followed by a performance of Shakespeare's As You Like It would be idyllic.  The reality however is 20mph wind, half a picnic due to Adrian's late appearance with the rest and a downfall of rain just as the play started.  Fortunately English actors are as stoic as the audience.  Anywhere else in the world the performance would have been abandoned but it being England everyone ignored the rain an it eventually stopped.