What changed in this update
The UK had a spring and summer of persistent heat with five widespread heatwaves and 40 days of temperatures above 30C (86F), smashing the previous record of 34 days.
Event intelligence
UK summer 2026 hottest on record, Met Office says
2 connected story threads
Current state
Provisional Met Office figures show summer 2026 was the UK's hottest on record, with an average mean temperature of 16.5C that the Met Office said was made 130 times more likely by the climate crisis; England temperatures peaked at 38.1C and the season included five widespread heatwaves and 40 days above 30C.
Grounded in 4 reports across 3 sources
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Source coverage
Source reports
BBC News – Science & Environment BBC
Summer 2026 was UK's hottest on record, Met Office says
Met Office figures show that the previous record, set in 2025, has been broken after an unprecedented summer of persistent heat.
BBC News – Science & Environment BBC
Met Office: Summer 2026 was UK's hottest ever
The UK had a spring and summer of persistent heat with five widespread heatwaves and 40 days of temperatures above 30C (86F), smashing the previous record of 34 days.
Guardian
Summer of 2026 was UK’s hottest on record, Met Office says
Meteorologists say average mean temperature of 16.5C was made 130 times more likely by climate crisis This year’s summer was the UK’s hottest on record, according to provisional data, and the Met Office said the season’s mean temperature was made 130 times more likely by the climate crisis. Record-breaking and back-to-back heatwaves have scorched much of Europe. In England, temperatures peaked at 38.1C (100.1F) at K…
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Sky News – UK Sky
Summer 2026 was UK's hottest on record, Met Office says
Summer 2026 has been declared the hottest since records began in 1884, according to provisional statistics.