April showers become less arduous when you’ve got a quality brolly to hand, so Rachael Sharpe opens up a selection that Mary Poppins herself would be proud of

AUTOMATIC OPENERS

The compact cover

Blunt Metro

This umbrella is the perfect size to slip into a bag or tuck under an arm if you don’t quite trust your weather app’s prediction that it probably won’t rain. Press the auto-open button for instant coverage that, thanks to Blunt’s 360° spinning tech and non-pointy tips, can shrug off careless knocks. £70 / bluntumbrellas.co.uk

The lightweight lifter

Doppler Zero Magic

It stows away small, but this one will still keep two people dry in inclement weather. It features a handy automatic opening and closing mechanism, but the magic is its weight: at 184g, the carbon-ribbed Zero Magic is stable yet so light you could almost forget you’re holding it. £40 /doppler-umbrellas.co.uk