UK records hottest summer in nearly 150 years, Met Office confirms

The UK, after battling with five heatwaves this summer marks as the hottest summer in nearly 150 years, the Met Office confirmed.

According to the latest data released by the Met Office UK, it shows 40 days of temperatures peaking at 30C, breaking the previous record of 34 days.

The hottest day of the summer was on August 13, when temperatures rose to 38.1C at Kew Gardens.

Five heatwaves between May and August left large parts of the UK, facing drought like conditions and triggering wildfires and travel disruptions.

The UK recorded an overall average temperature across the whole summer (June, July and August) of 16.5C, surpassing the previous summer record 16.1C set last year, per Met Office.

Despite the cooler weather at the end of August, the areas of high pressure have dominated, in dry spells from continental Europe driving temperatures higher.

Before 2026, temperatures of over 37C had only been observed nine times in the UK—three of which have happened this year alone.

For context, the first heatwave that hit the UK in May also smashed that month’s temperature record by over 2C, while some areas of the UK had experienced a three-week heatwave stretch in July and August.

The UK’s national meteorological service, Met Office, had earlier predicted that the UK was on track for its hottest summer on record as temperatures stayed around average for the rest of August.