Scorcher

Strangely it seems to have been less humid in London and the South East than elsewhere. Dew points have generally been lower there and night time mins not quite as high. Elsewhere temps haven't been quite as high but the high humidity has certainly compensated for that.

True, the real reason for them wanting it fresher is because the tube becomes a sauna when temperatures are this high. If there is a heatwave just in London there is a heatwave, we don't need to know any more! Fantastic day here, a lot better than expected. Mainly sunny since this morning with only a couple of cloudy intervals and a temperature of 28C. Humidity is around 60% as well, it feels wonderful! Warmest day of the year so far here and could still get higher.

Look at those temps in Sweden and Norway, there is a 32C that is further north than the Shetland Islands! Looks like they did quite well in the Shetlands too, 22C is very warm for that part of the world. Also interesting to see warmer temperatures here than in southern Italy, quite surprising really.

It is similar to the US deep south, just not in mid summer. I spent a year in northern Florida and this kind of weather is common there in May and also early October. The US deep south is not tropical of course. It's just the feeling in the air that reminds of Florida, I know it's not as hot as it is there in summer but the scent in the air and general feeling in the air does have similarities. We've just had a minimum temperature of 19C here overnight, very warm indeed for this part of the world. In fact it's probably the warmest night since at least the summer of 2006, and I'm doubtful that we actually had a night as warm as this during 2006. Of course that spell had far lower dew points and I don't recall a night higher than 18C.

I agree with this completely, that's why I am concerned when I hear the word 'fresher' on the weather forecast as in this country it often means cooler with a strong breeze and this is rarely accompanied by wall to wall sunshine. It's also why I rarely look forward to a thundery breakdown- yes I enjoy the thunder but only look forward to it if I know the warmth is going to return promptly. 2006 was ideal for this as even when thunderstorms did occur the heat returned very quickly. Yes it felt most unusual today in the showers as the temperature barely seemed to drop at all when the rain fell. It's not common to have rain and temperatures of 24C here but that's what happened today. It reminded me a lot of Florida, every time I walked out of a building the humidity was instantly noticeable. I know humid conditions are relatively common in the UK but certainly not with temperatures in the mid 20s and almost total cloud cover.

It looks like we will probably get another hot spell, the more knowledgable members of the forum have suggested the latter part of July though, so we may have to wait a while. I just hope we just don't get too many northerly or north westerly winds in the meantime, I dislike 'freshness' in mid summer and these wind directions bring exactly that. I would take south-westerlies over winds with a northerly component any day, although north-easterlies can be pleasant at this time of year.

I must admit although I initially disagreed with those who suggested there was no heatwave outside the South East, I now realise that this spell has been a big disappointment in my area. It seemed we would reach at least 28C today or yesterday but neither day has really delivered. Yesterday the cloud arrived just as temperatures were heading towards the high 20s- we reached 26C by about 1pm but then the cloud arrived and the temperature actually dropped. Today there has been way too much cloud around all day and we've maxed out at 25C. Not heatwave standard by any means. One thing I would say is that the combination of temperatures in the mid 20s, with cloud and very high humidity is extrememly unusual in this part of the world so it has certainly been interesting. I'm now not looking forward to the weather cooling off over the weekend and the dreaded word 'fresher' appearing on the weather forecast. It has to be the word I hate most in all weather terminology! I would quite happily take this warmth and humidity every day of the summer, it's lovely!

Not much sunshine here today but very warm and humid temperatures, currently 24.5C. A fair bit of cloud about but some sunny intervals. Even during a period of rain at 8am the temperature was 20C, and we had a minimum last night of 18C.

I do think my original estimate was a bit high at 18.5C but I'm going to stick with it as I think there is going to be very hot second half to July after an average first half.

Like here though, different people have different preferences. It's just from my experience, my friends from the midwest (I have friends in Chicago and in Michigan) say that they consider 82F and above to be 'hot', if it's humid anyway. My friend in Chicago told me that her family always use 82F as the benchmark for putting on the air conditioning. I know the weather stations have different ideas, and 90F is certainly the 'hot' mark for them in the US.

I think those temperatures prove that this is not just a 'heatwave for the south', with Blackpool Airport seeing 29C.

Iceberg it's not 100% certain that 30C will be reached today but I don't think I would take your odds of 50/50! Regardless of whether that 28C has been rounded up or down it's got to be at least 27.5C and with several hours of heating to go and plenty of sunshine that temperature is only going to go one way. Even in my area it's far sunnier than I expected and we have already reached 26C so I think 29C is a possibility even here. Yes lower than I expected as well, dew point here is 14C but I guess it could rise through the day. Still feels a lot more humid than previous hot spells and there is very little wind.

Well the BBC are saying 17C in towns and cities tonight, higher in London and the South East and with dew points as high as they are that sounds about right to me. I think I'm right in saying that on many nights in summer the temperature doesn't quite drop to dew point, so I would say 16-17C for most as minima tonight.

I can't see that happening, the dew point here is 16C at the moment and the temperature is still 20C, no way it will drop below 15C IMO.

Yes dew points are high so temperatures should hold up overnight, I'd say we will still get down to 16C by dawn though. There isn't much cloud here so maybe you will benefit there from having that bit more cloud.

Lovely sunny evening here, and it's still 22C at 9pm! Just been out for a run in the woods and the humid feel in the air and lack of wind made it feel very warm indeed. This really is my ideal summer evening, I can put up with my room being a bit hot but its just lovely to be able to sit outside and not feel cold at all.

You may have a point about the Americans and their winters, it could affect their views on what is hot during summer. Another point I would make is that their buildings are all very well air conditioned during the summer, so you actually notice the heat more when you're constantly stepping in and out of the cold buildings. In some buildings you see women wearing jumpers and cardigans because the air conditioning is so cold, I reckon a lot of places have it set at about 16 or 17C! Agree about 30C not being a common phenomenon away from the South East. In my area we have not reached it since July 2006 and that month was exceptional as I think I recall the temperature reaching 30C on five days during the month. Before July 2006 you have to go back to August 2003 to find the last time 30C was officially recorded at Manchester Airport, although there was an unofficial reading of 30C at Hulme in July 2005. This area seems reasonably favoured for temperatures of 27-28C which is seen most summers, but the conditions have to be just right for the mercury to climb above 30C. I'd say on average it occurs once every 3 years in these parts.

I disagree, considering the average summer temperatures in the UK. I've spent quite a lot of time in the Midwest of the USA during June and July and most people there consider 28C to be hot despite it being their July average. To the vast majority of people in this country 30C will be seen as very hot, particularly with the humidity that will probably be around next week. If you finished a marathon in 30C temperatures I'm sure you would be calling conditions very hot at the end of it. There really has not been a lot of hype at all over this spell of weather at all, outside of the weather fans like ourselves. I'm not quite sure why you're trying to play it down, we didn't get a spell like this at all in 2007 and perhaps not in 2008 either.

18.5C for me please

Are you serious? If the models are to be believed next week would certainly qualify as a heatwave in my book. You've got to think about the average temperatures- some places could see temperatures 9 or 10C above average next week so that has to qualify as a heatwave. Also it was 28C at Heathrow today and 25-26C was seen quite widely, so I don't think it can be called media sensationalism. In fact quite the opposite, as the BBC has not really mentioned the potential heat next week.

The Manchester figure will have been taken from the airport which is actually a semi-rural location and seems to be a bit of a frost hollow. Stations just to the north tend to record higher minima. I would not be surprised if Stonyhurst had a higher minimum as there is usually more cloud up there.

Just got it here as well now, I thought it would stop at the Pennines but it has continued westwards and what was a lovely evening is now dull, breezy and cool. Just hope the cloud is gone by tomorrow morning.

Yes of course, just wanted to mention something I have actually observed. I know it's pretty obvious really.

True, I live just to the east of Manchester (Denton) and we're almost completely sheltered here by the Pennines directly to the east and there are also hills to the South East in the Peak District. It is noticeable crossing the Pennines in an easterly- Leeds seems to be affected far more severely by that low cloud than we do in these parts.

Really? I wouldn't have thought you would be that far inland. It's very unusual for us to get any in these parts and I'm further east than you are in Stafford I think!