LONDON: 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.
"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.
The current record for the hottest May day is 32.8 °C, set in 1922 and seen again in 1944.
"Records are usually only broken by tenths of a degree -- making this heatwave unprecedented for the time of year," added the Met Office statement.
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.
"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.
"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.
"I am worried about it because it obviously shows that global warming is happening," she added.
"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.
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.
Britain saw its hottest year on record in 2025.
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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