Britain is about to sweat through something it’s never quite experienced before. Forecasters are now warning that this week could see the mercury crack the all-time June record, with temperatures potentially nudging past 35°C in parts of England and Wales.
The Met Office has issued a red weather warning for extreme heat, a classification it reserves for conditions that pose a genuine risk to life. That’s not a phrase they throw around lightly. The last time a red heat warning was issued, back in July 2022, temperatures soared past 40°C and the country’s infrastructure buckled under the pressure.
This time, the culprit is a plume of hot air tracking north from the Iberian Peninsula, the same system that’s been roasting Spain and Portugal for the past fortnight. Southern England is expected to bear the brunt of it, with London, the Thames Valley and parts of the South West all in the firing line.
The current June record stands at 35.6°C, set at Southampton in 1976, a summer that’s become shorthand for national drought and standpipes in the street. Met Office forecasters say there’s a realistic chance that figure gets beaten, possibly by Wednesday or Thursday.
NHS England has already activated its heat health alert, urging people to check on elderly neighbours and avoid strenuous outdoor activity during the hottest part of the day, roughly 11am to 3pm. Hospitals typically see a sharp rise in heat-related admissions when temperatures stay above 30°C for more than two consecutive days.
“This is not just uncomfortable weather,” one senior Met Office meteorologist noted in a briefing. “Overnight temperatures staying above 20°C mean the body gets no chance to recover.”
Train operators are already warning of speed restrictions on certain lines, as rails can buckle when track temperatures exceed 50°C. Several outdoor events have quietly begun drawing up contingency plans.
Schools, offices and anyone without air conditioning are going to have a rough few days of it. Paddling pools are reportedly selling out across the South East, and the queues at coastal car parks are going to be something to behold.
Whether this becomes a summer we talk about for the next 50 years, the way we still talk about ’76, rather depends on what comes next.
