Britain had its hottest day on record for May on Monday, the country’s national weather service said, with the temperature nearing 35 degrees Celsius (95 degrees Fahrenheit).
On a day that also broke records for a public holiday, the Met Office said the temperature hit 34.8 C (94.64 F) at west London’s Kew Gardens, provisionally exceeding Britain’s previous 32.8 C (91 F) May record, seen in both 1922 and 1944.
A study last year found that the chances of surpassing the previous 32.8 C May record were three times more likely as a result of changes in climate as a result of human greenhouse gas emissions, the Met Office said.
“This heat would be exceptional in the UK even in mid-summer, let alone in May,” it said.
Monday was also the hottest public holiday recorded since Met Office UK-wide records began in 1884, exceeding a previous high of 33.3 C in August 2019.
Swimmers flocked to open air pools and pedestrians sought to cool off in public fountains, while near the village of Brockworth in south-west England, competitors braved both the heat and a steep hill for an annual cheese-rolling contest.