Britain to bake in 'hottest day ever' 41C heat as full list of areas issued

Experts have warned that the hottest day the UK has ever seen could be right around the corner as a new - even hotter - heatwave looks set to take hold within the week.

Sian Hewitt

16:21, 28 Jun 2026Updated 19:54, 28 Jun 2026

The UK will sizzle soon(Image: WXCHARTS)

There's no break from the scorching weather that has seen schools shut and red warnings in place - as forecasters predict even higher temperatures to hit imminently.

Experts have warned that the hottest day the UK has ever seen could be right around the corner as another heatwave looks set to take hold within the week. The south east of England could reach as high as 41C, according to forecasts.

Temperature records were smashed this last week as the mercury surged past 37C, with Britain marking the record for the hottest June day ever being broken on three consecutive days, culminating with 37.3C on Friday. But now advanced weather modelling maps suggest the hottest day ever to strike the UK will hit by the second week of July.

[More hot weather is on the way imminently]

More hot weather is on the way imminently(Image: Geoffrey Swaine/Shutterstock)

Weather model now suggests we might soon see the hottest day in British history. The current record stands at 40.3C, which was recorded during the scorching heatwave in July 2022.

But even hotter weather will roast the country within days, starting on July 8 when temperatures could rise as high as 35C in the south-east. Almost all of central and southern England may hit 30C or more, the data suggests, with highs of 33C coming as far north as Yorkshire.

The weather will continue on July 10 with the arrival of staggering highs of 40C hitting western and southern England. The data suggests the mercury could peak at 37C to 39C quite widely across central and southern England, but things do not end there.

July 11 is projected to be even warmer still. The GFS model shows possible temperature maximums of 41C in western England, while swathes of the country from Yorkshire down to London could rise as high as 41C.

[Many have struggled sleeping in the most recent heatwave]

Many have struggled sleeping in the most recent heatwave(Image: Getty)

Article continues below

These temperatures would almost certainly constitute an official heatwave, which is declared when an area records temperatures over the heatwave threshold for three consecutive days. The threshold varies from 25C to 28C in different counties - it sits at 28C in the south-east where temperatures tend to be warmer, and drops to 25C the further away from the south-east you go.

UK counties facing 40C or more in new heatwave

Yorkshire
Nottinghamshire
Lincolnshire
Leicestershire
Derbyshire
Northamptonshire
Lancashire
Cheshire
Shropshire
Bedfordshire
Hertfordshire
Herefordshire
Worcestershire
Warwickshire
Oxfordshire
Buckinghamshire
Berkshire
Surrey

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