UK set to break record for hottest May day

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Britain was set to break its record for the hottest day in May on Monday, the national weather agency predicted, as the country sweltered in an “unprecedented” heatwave.

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“Today will be the hottest day in May in the UK in our temperature records, with highs of 35 degrees Celsius expected,” the Met Office said on social media.

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The current record for the hottest May day is 32.8C, set in 1922 and seen again in 1944.

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“Records are usually only broken by tenths of a degree — making this heatwave unprecedented for the time of year,” added the Met Office statement.

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Monday is also expected to be the hottest bank holiday ever, as heatwave conditions spread to parts of southeast England and London by Sunday night.

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“We rarely see temperatures above 35C, even in the summer months, so to see temperatures getting close to 35C in May is, as I say, pretty historic,” Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan told the Press Association news agency.

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“It’s nice to have it, but it is much, much hotter than it should be in the UK,” Andrea Quaine, a 41-year-old mother, told AFP in London as temperatures exceeded 30C on Sunday.

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“I am worried about it because it obviously shows that global warming is happening,” she added.

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“The weather here, it’s like a mini version of hell. It’s boiling. It’s like really hot. The sunscreen, it will protect me, but it’s really hot,” said 10-year-old Liza Nizari, who was visiting London from Manchester in the northwest.

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Scientists say human-induced climate change is making extreme weather events like heatwaves, droughts and floods more intense, resulting in temperature records being broken more frequently.

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Britain saw its hottest year on record in 2025.

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Climate advisers last week warned the UK government that the country was “built for a climate that no longer exists” and urged it to adapt infrastructure like schools and hospitals for a warming planet.

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AFP

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