UK records hottest day of the year - but thunderstorms are brewing later this week

People across the country flocked to beaches in the hot weather. (Photo by Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)People across the country flocked to beaches in the hot weather. (Photo by Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)
People across the country flocked to beaches in the hot weather. (Photo by Finnbarr Webster/Getty Images)

Bank holiday Monday saw the highest temperature of the year recorded, with Kinloss in northern Scotland hitting 24.6C (76.3F) on Monday (May 31) afternoon.

This surpassed the previous high for 2021, set on March 30 at Kew Gardens in south-west London when the temperature reached 24.5C.

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The sunny weather brought a welcome change for Brits after a May which was the fourth wettest on record, and the high temperatures are set to continue on Tuesday (June 1) across most of the country.

Highs of 27C are predicted for the first day of meteorological summer on Tuesday.

Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna said: “Lots of fine, sunny weather around – if anything, temperatures up a degree or so on Monday.”

Areas in the Midlands, western England north and west Wales and western parts of Scotland could see highs of 26C on Tuesday, with the possibility of 27C in one or two spots.

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“We’re looking again at some very warm sunshine around for many northern and eastern parts of the UK".

He added, however, that “thundery showers will start to push in across south-west England and Wales by Wednesday morning.”

He said the unsettled conditions will start to feed north and eastwards across England, Wales and Northern Ireland, although temperatures could still top 27C or 28C across parts of the Midlands and East Anglia on Wednesday.

There is a continued risk of thundery showers across the east and south-east England on Thursday and Friday, with conditions beginning to turn fresher from the west heading into the weekend.

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“There will be a bit more cloud around to end the week, with temperatures coming back down to average, the high teens for most,” Mr Petagna said.

May was the fourth wettest on record for the UK, and the wettest ever for Wales.

Additional reporting by PA

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