Heading for 83F … you can bank on a scorcher!
AFTER shivering in the Beast from the East not so long ago, Britons turned out in their droves to make the most of this weekend’s sizzling weather.
But if you thought yesterday was hot, temperatures today are on course to be higher still – and could even break the 83.4F (28.6C) record for the early May bank holiday.
Better still, forecasters say fine and dry weather will last into the coming week, albeit turning cooler.
Central, southern and eastern parts of the country are likely to hang on to the sunny conditions, although northern and western areas may become cloudier with the chance of rain.
Over the weekend, millions flocked to parks and beaches to bask in the blue skies and sunshine that covered most of the UK. But rail replacement works meant those heading to Gatwick Airport or Brighton from London faced travel chaos.
Temperatures peaked at 79F (26.3C) in west London yesterday but that is likely to be beaten in the capital today. Met office forecaster Sarah Kent said: ‘Fine weather is likely for much of the country with very light winds. Temperatures could reach 83F (28C) in London and there is a chance they could be slightly higher still, beating the record for the early May bank holiday weekend.
‘But cloud could linger on the Irish Sea coast, making it much cooler with temperatures in the low teens Celsius. We will see a gradual change to fresher conditions as the week goes on.’
She said tomorrow would still be very warm in the South East, with temperatures of 79F (26C) possible in London.
The record temperature for the entire early May bank holiday weekend was recorded in Cheltenham on May 6, 1995 at 84F (28.6C). The record for the holiday Monday itself is 74.4F (23.6C), set in 1999.
Miss Kent said there will be the chance of thundery showers on the east coast during tomorrow, while a weather front could bring rain in northwest England and Wales.
Wednesday is due to be dry and still warm in central, southern and eastern England, with temperatures around 68F (20C). And the fine and dry weather is set to continue for southern areas into Thursday but will become cooler, with temperatures of 61-63F (16-17C).
Miss Kent added: ‘ It will then become more changeable for a time, with temperatures closer to the seasonal average of 61F (16C).
‘Looking towards the weekend and next week, the best of the weather is likely in the South and East, which is likely to have some fine and dry periods, although there is the chance of thunder, whereas the North and West are likely to be cloudier and cooler.’ As Britons lapped up the sun over the weekend, thousands of travellers on Southern rail were getting hot under the collar for a different reason. Passengers were advised not to travel to Brighton as engineering works meant there were no direct trains from London, causing high levels of overcrowding on the line at Gatwick.
Passengers at Gatwick faced queues of two hours for rail replacement services in the scorching heat. Twitter user Aimie Atkinson described the scenes as ‘absolute chaos’.
Southern advised passengers to allow an extra two hours for trips on the line.
Elsewhere, the sunshine has triggered an explosion of bluebells in woodland across the country. The first bluebells this year had been delayed by the Beast from the East, which brought freezing temperatures and heavy snow in March.
The first record of bluebells flowering came 39 days later than it did last year, according to data submitted to the Woodland Trust – on March 20 in south-east England, compared to February 9 in south-west England in 2017.
By April 20 last year, there had been 716 records of bluebells flowering submitted to the trust’s Nature’s Calendar scheme, in which members of the public help record the changing seasons. By the same time this year there had been only 73. Dr Kate Lewthwaite, who leads the Nature’s Calendar project, said: ‘The cold snap had a dramatic effect on spring’s progression.’
Other signs that spring is later than last year include fewer sightings of orange tip butterflies and swallows.