The temperature of 36.7C recorded at Merryfield, Somerset, represents a new June maximum record for the UK.

It is also now the 7th= hottest day ever recorded, matching the 1911 record at Raunds, Northamptonshire, that stood for nearly 80 years as the UK’s hottest day.

The top 10 list below shows the day. What sets it apart is that the Merryfield temperature, a site 119 miles SW of Kew Gardens, was some 5.1C hotter than Kew which recorded just 31.6C!

Kew Gardens, and other London stations, are usually no more than around 2C cooler than where records are set.

It would seem that the strong easterly breeze has really helped keep a lid on the temperature in the east of the UK today.