Britain set to enjoy 'historic' heat on 35C Bank Holiday Monday - before thunderstorms sweep in

Britain is set to bask in "historic" temperatures this Bank Holiday Monday following the country's hottest May day in nearly 80 years.

Temperatures reached 32.3C at Kew Gardens in southwest London on Sunday, with the capital feeling the heat in a remarkably warm weekend.

The Met Office has said heatwave conditions were met in eight parts of England, stretching from Suffolk to south London.

Wales and Northern Ireland also reached 2026 record temperatures of 27.4C in Cardiff and 23.4C in Armagh on Sunday.

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Scotland saw highs of 23.5C in Edinburgh on Sunday, just below its current record of 23.6C recorded in Aboyne on May 1.

And now, forecasters have said there's more in store.

"The heatwave continues," the Met Office's short-range prediction says, with high pressure bringing the potential for "record-breaking May temperatures".

"The unprecedented heatwave for May will become more widespread as we begin the new week with temperatures reaching the mid-30s in the hottest spots," the Met Office added.

Meteorologist Tom Morgan admitted the heat was "historic".

He said: "We rarely see temperatures above 35C, even in the summer months, so to see temperatures getting close to 35 in May is pretty historic.

"We are probably going to beat the all-time maximum temperature record for May, which currently stands at 32.8C."

Temperature maps for the Bank Holiday Monday have seen swathes of Britain tipped to bask in 34C heat.

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Peterborough, Nottingham, Oxford, London, Birmingham and more are all set to swelter.

There was "a small chance we could even see 35C, while temperatures in the low thirties are possible elsewhere across England and Wales, and it will be a warmer day also for Scotland and Northern Ireland", Mr Morgan said.

The figures are expected to beat those in the Mediterranean, with British-favourite holiday hotspots as much as 10C cooler than the UK.

Forecasters are expecting 25C in Cyprus on Monday, 24C in Alicante, 31C in Rome, 27C in Monaco and 24C in Corfu.

Into the evening, conditions are set to be warm across the country - except for the far north of Scotland, where there will be a "bit more cloud".

And Age UK has urged older Britons to stay inside during the hottest hours of the day, slated for between 11am and 3pm.

But looking forward to the rest of the week, "isolated thunderstorms" may soon sweep in.

The heat is likely to "spark one or two isolated thunderstorms across the UK on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday", Mr Morgan said.

But the "bulk of the UK is set to stay dry, fine and settled through much of the week ahead", he added.

Then, in the weeks to come, conditions look set to return to the mean.

"Moving into early June, conditions will likely become unsettled across the UK as a whole," the Met Office said.

"Atlantic weather systems will move in from the west bringing showers or longer spells of rain at times.

"The rain will likely be heaviest in parts of the west and northwest. Temperatures will probably be near normal."

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