MELTING MONDAY

Hottest Easter bank holiday on record as UK basks in 77F

DAYS of glorious bank holiday sunshine culminated in the hottest Easter Monday on record.

Britain was hotter than Marrakesh, Rome and Ibiza as millions of people flocked to beaches and barbecues to bask in a heatwave for the fourth day in a row.

All four UK nations recorded their hottest ever Easter Monday. At Heathrow and Northolt, west London, and Wisley, Surrey, the mercury hit 25C (77F), beating the English record of 24C (75.2F) in the Solent in 2011.

At Armagh in Northern Ireland, a peak of 21.4C (70.5F) set a new record, beating 21.1C (69.9F) at Knockarevan in 1984.

At Kinlochewe, a high of 24.2C (75.5F) set a new record for Scotland.

And in Cardiff, a temperature of 23.6C (74.4F) set a new Welsh record, beating 23.2C (73.7F) at Nantmor in 1984.

But the Mediterranean sunshine will give way to thunderstorms as millions return to work today.

The Met Office has warned of flash floods as thundery showers arrive tomorrow and up to one inch of rain could fall within an hour in some parts.

The weather will remain unsettled until the weekend and forecasters are warning of possible 50mph to 60mph gusts, leading to the eighth named storm of the season.

In England, a high of 24C (75F) was recorded at Heathrow on Sunday – just shy of the record of 25.3C (77.5F) in 2011.

There was one downside, however, with chocoholics lamenting their melting Easter eggs, while shops were forced to shut their blinds to prevent window displays wilting in the heat.

Emma Smith, of the Met Office, said: ‘It’s been the hottest Easter weekend on record for most parts of the country. Yesterday was another very warm day, with temperatures climbing to 25 Celsius in London and parts of the North West, making it the hottest Easter Monday in history.

‘It will stay very warm today, with the best of the sunshine around Bristol and the Midlands, where it should reach 23 Celsius again.’ But she added: ‘ On Wednesday, the sunny weather will start to break down. There are going to be heavy thunderstorms and the Met Office is likely to put out an official warning at some stage.

‘The storms will arrive from the continent on Wednesday morning and move from south to north really quickly, reaching Scotland in the evening. There will be very heavy rain with the risk of flash floods, as well as thunder and lightning.

‘The thunderstorms will hit almost all of the country and there will be sudden heavy downpours, with the Midlands worst affected. Towards the end of the week, it will be very unsettled, with lots of wind and heavy showers. There could be 50 to 60mph winds at the weekend.’

Millions of people headed to the seaside over the bank holiday. About 750,000 holidaymakers visited Cornwall, while 300,000 went to Brighton beach.

Supermarkets saw a barbecue rush, with Asda selling close to 750,000 burgers and 350,000 sausages, and Sainsbury’s said its ice lolly sales had quadrupled.

The UK’s hottest Easter temperature was 29.4C (84.92F) at Camden Square in London on Easter Saturday in 1949.