LONDON, United Kingdom – Britain is set to break its temperature record for the hottest day in May on Monday, May 25, 2026, as the national weather agency forecasts a heatwave across the country.
Okay News reports that the Met Office predicted highs of 35 degrees Celsius. The agency stated on social media, “Today will be the hottest day in May in the UK in our temperature records, with highs of 35 degrees Celsius expected.”
The current record for the hottest day in May is 32.8C, which was established in 1922 and recorded again in 1944. The Met Office noted in a statement that records are usually only broken by tenths of a degree. Heatwave conditions are expected to spread across southeast England and London by Sunday night, creating the hottest bank holiday ever recorded.
Tom Morgan, a meteorologist at the Met Office, spoke to the Press Association news agency about the temperatures. “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,” Morgan said.
Residents and visitors in London experienced temperatures exceeding 30C on Sunday. Andrea Quaine, a 41-year-old mother, spoke to AFP. “It’s nice to have it, but it is much, much hotter than it should be in the UK,” Quaine said. “I am worried about it because it obviously shows that global warming is happening,” she added. Liza Nizari, a 10-year-old visiting from Manchester, said, “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.”
Britain recorded its hottest year in 2025. Climate advisers last week warned the UK government that the country was “built for a climate that no longer exists” and urged the adaptation of infrastructure like schools and hospitals.
