HITTING THE BEACH
Resorts basked in a bumper weekend but experts predict we may face changeable weather this week
Yorkshire enjoyed a bank holiday to remember as this scene at Scarborough’s South Bay shows. But it was inland where the hottest temperatures were recorded, with 25.6C (78F) in Bradford with Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire at 25.2C (77.4F).
People may feel glum given how they have been spoilt.
Sarah Kent, Met Office forecaster.
YORKSHIRE BASKED in wall-towall sunshine yesterday as the region broke the record for the hottest early May Bank Holiday Monday ever recorded, the Met Office said.
The beaches of the East Coast were packed as people flocked to the sands.
But it was inland where the hottest temperatures were recorded, with the mercury hitting 25.6C (78F) in Bradford with Linton-on-Ouse in North Yorkshire just a shade behind at 25.2C (77.4F) – beating the previous record of 23.6C (74.5F) in 1999.
Met Office forecaster Sarah Kent said: “Yorkshire has beaten the record for the hottest Bank Holiday Monday for early May – but if the wind is coming off the sea, the temperature will be in the mid-teens at best.”
Be that as it may, roads into Bridlington – where the temperature was a fresher 14.9C (58.8F) thanks to a light breeze off the North Sea – were gridlocked as thousands poured in to enjoy its golden sands.
Bob Hillery, president of Bridlington Tourism Association, said he had one of the best early May Bank Holiday weekends in his 38 years as a guesthouse owner: “The town is absolutely solid, which is not surprising, what with having warmer weather than the Balearics.
“The tourist board has been ringing us to see of they can get any more accommodation. It has been a bumper weekend.”
Meanwhile, soaring temperatures in west London matched the previous record for the hottest early May Bank Holiday weekend.
A temperature of 28.6C (83.4F) was recorded in Northolt at 3.21pm yesterday, beating the previous record of 28.6C in 1995.
After a “beautiful start” today, a little cloud is expected to bubble up late morning and the temperature might just be hot enough to trigger an isolated thundery shower, the Met Office said.
The jet stream will dig further south as the week progresses, turning the weather cooler and more changeable – with the forecast for York next Saturday at 15C or 16C. “That is 10 degrees down on what we have had this weekend,” said Ms Kent. “We are getting back to average and more changeable conditions interspersed with dryer and brighter interludes. “Comparatively it will feel quite fresh next weekend.
“People may feel glum given how they have been spoilt yesterday and Sunday.”
The weather is set to become mixed as the month progresses and the May 19 wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle draws near.
Looking at the long-range forecast, which is not as accurate as the shorter-range forecast, Met Office forecaster Charlie Powell said: “It looks like we should be prepared for some pretty changeable weather throughout the second half of May.
“We’re still going to see some dry days, but there’s still going to be some wet days mixed in as well.”