For the third successive day, a new June maximum temperature record was set, as temperatures soared to 37.3°C at Santon Downham in Suffolk. The good news, if you have had enough of the heat and humidity, is that the worst of the extreme heat is now pulling away to the east. However, it will still be another very warm or hot day across eastern and south-eastern England today.

The weekend dawns warm in many regions, although temperatures are generally starting off slightly cooler than they have over the last few mornings. Many places are dry this morning, but there are some showers and thunderstorms affecting parts of south-east England, while many northern and western areas are seeing more in the way of cloud bringing scattered showery outbreaks.

The showers in the north and west will tend to become heavier and more frequent as we go through the day, and the risk of showers or thunderstorms will remain close to south-east England. However, for many parts of England and Wales it will be another largely fine and dry day. It will once again become very warm or hot, although temperatures will not reach the highs of recent days. Nonetheless, maximums of 30°C to 33°C across central and eastern England will still be well above normal, while in the north and west highs in the low to mid-twenties will feel more comfortable.

For this evening and tonight, showers and fresher conditions will edge slowly eastwards thanks to a cold front, while some rain or thunderstorms could also affect south-east England for a time. This takes us into a day of sunny spells and scattered showers for many regions tomorrow, with showers locally heavy and thundery. Temperatures will continue to ease back too as fresher air pushes in from the west ahead of a more typical week of weather next week.

METEOROLOGIST : BARBER