Sun worshippers

So I'm in the middle of the UK summer and a real 35 degree heatwave. As soon as you step out of your air-conditioned car or shady house, the heat hits you like a wall. Well, this is novel for the UK, at least. It physically hurts to be out in the direct sun in the middle of the day and you can almost feel the ultra-violet rays damaging your skin and kicking off all sort of mutations... Yeah, yeah, I know, an over-active imagination, but at least people all over the world are starting to realise that prolonged exposure to the sun for people with fair skin can be very dangerous.
So why oh why do a significant number of fair-skinned UK residents lie down in the full sunlight for hours at a time? If they don't use sun-cream they'll burn to a crisp. If they do, it'll take hours and hours to get any kind of a tan and the damage is still being done to their skin in any event. I was stopped by a market research lady a year or so ago and chatted to her for a few minutes. My attention was suddenly grabbed by what I thought was an unusual leather petticoat under her blouse - and then I realised that this was her skin. Tanned to the point of being cow-hide, this lady's skin, blasted by hundreds of hours of sun-lounging, had become something (to me) completely hideous.
Apologies if you're naturally tanned or with coloured skin and can venture out without protection - as for me, I'm sticking to the shade between 10am and 4pm this summer!