Hottest end to September since 1895! Temperature soars to 28C... and it's set to stay for the weekend
By Tamara Cohen and Simon Neville
Last updated at 12:13 AM on 30th September 2011
Sun worshippers peeled off in parks and enjoyed surprise sorties to the seaside as yesterday became the hottest September 29 for more than 100 years.
The 84f (29c) temperatures seen in parts of the country trumped the Costa del Sol, Turkey and even Mexico.
And it smashed the previous record for a balmy September 29, when the mercury hit 81.5f (27.5c) in York in 1895, the year of the Dreyfus Affair and the first moving picture.
The sun sets on a beautiful day in Brighton - people enjoy the last moments at low tide neat the West Pier
Red hot: Artists Sonia Canals (left) and Julie-Anne Gilburt enjoy the unseasonably beautiful weather on Brighton seafront today
Bronzed beauty: Daniella Kopova, 29, enjoys the sunshine in Primrose Hill, London
Skimpy in September: Thanks to the unfeasibly warm weather, where temperatures have reached 28C, bikinis (like Daniella's) are finally getting the outing that they missed in July
Yesterday Finningley in South Yorkshire and Northolt in London were the hottest places at 84f (29c), while temperatures hit 80.6f (27c) in the East Midlands, the Norfolk coast and Jersey.
The sunshine is set to continue into a glorious weekend, finally bringing us the summertime which July and August conspicuously failed to achieve.
The unexpected bout of good weather is even confusing garden plants, which have been tricked into blooming for a second time this year.
Even night-time temperatures have been as high as 63f (17c) across the country – usually the average in the daytime in September.
There has barely been a cloud in the sky across England and the good weather is set to continue until Tuesday, when westerly winds will bring cooler temperatures and a chance of showers.
Yesterday, there were reports that tens of thousands of workers had called in sick to enjoy the sunshine, while hotel chain Travelodge reported a surge in bookings for this weekend as people planned last-minute minibreaks on the coast.
Met Office forecaster Helen Chivers predicted temperatures up to 84f (29c) this weekend.
‘Most parts of the UK are going to continue to enjoy warm sunshine all the way through until Sunday,’ she said. ‘Temperatures in many places on Friday will be between 77f (25c) and 81f (27c), with the possibility of 82f (28c) or 84f (29c) in eastern areas. It will be very similar on Saturday and around 79f (26c) on Sunday.
Toddling into winter: Three-month-old Lucy Lillie goes for a stroll by Tower Bridge on the hottest September 29 since 1895
Muddy waters: Aberystwyth university students (l-r) Bella Harnett, Harriet Walsh, Francis Shipway and Jessica Jones enjoying the hot weather by the sea
BUT WINTER'S ON ITS WAY... FOR SOME AT LEAST
The country may well be basking in a glorious Indian summer but Plymouth City Council will have its gritting lorries at the ready from this weekend.
Despite record-breaking temperatures, authorities said that, because of the last two harsh winters, its seven gritters will be on standby for the next six months from Saturday.
It is also planning a public road show to dole out 'information about how to travel safely when there is ice or snow on the roads'.
Heathrow has also unveiled today its upgraded winter plans following chaos at the airport last Christmas.
It has trebled the number of snow vehicles, made more staff available to clear snow and agreed with airlines and air traffic control a better system for managing cancellations due to bad weather.
So far BAA has committed to investing £32.4 million in the new measures.
Despite record-breaking temperatures, authorities said that, because of the last two harsh winters, its seven gritters will be on standby for the next six months from Saturday.
It is also planning a public road show to dole out 'information about how to travel safely when there is ice or snow on the roads'.
Heathrow has also unveiled today its upgraded winter plans following chaos at the airport last Christmas.
It has trebled the number of snow vehicles, made more staff available to clear snow and agreed with airlines and air traffic control a better system for managing cancellations due to bad weather.
So far BAA has committed to investing £32.4 million in the new measures.
‘We’ve got high pressure across the UK at the minute, which is stopping the Atlantic weather system from bringing in cloud and rain.’
But there were fears that while the hot weather would boost tourism, it would be another blow for Britain’s struggling retailers as sun-worshippers stayed away from the shops, which are already selling winter coats and knitwear for autumn.
Nick Bubb, retail analyst at Arden Partners, said sales of barbecues and ice creams would not make up for the shortfall.
‘Retailers need cold autumnal weather,’ he said. ‘It’s a big problem at a time when consumers don’t feel like spending anyway.’
News of the heatwave had not apparently reached Plymouth, whose city council announced its gritting lorries would be on standby for snow from this Sunday along with presentations for the public on safe travel when there is ice on the roads.
Professor Tim Sparks, nature adviser to the Trust, said: ‘The yellows and reds are in fact pigments found in leaves, and normally masked by the green chlorophyll.
These autumn colours are much more obvious in warm, sunny weather so providing that the subsequent nights are cool but not freezing we should see an explosion of colour in the coming weeks.’
All at sea: A man practises his front crawl in the shadow of a cargo ship off Canvey Island, England
Peacefully on the pier: A couple take in the view as they enjoy the sun on the seafront of Canvey Island
Hose me down: An elephant and zoo-keeper help keep each other cool at a safari park in Bewdley, Worcester
La belle vie: Clare Mugridge, 19, harvests grapes at Denbies Vineyard in Dorking during a bumper year for English wine production thanks to the soaring temperatures
Set to sizzle: The sun rises though the mist and fog, over Danbury, Essex, this morning on what is predicted to be one of the warmest days of the year
Green and very pleasant land: Visitors at Sheffield Park Garden in Sussex yesterday admire the results of the hot spell, which has caused spring plants to flower for a second time
Three day forecast
In a garden in Wirral, Merseyside, gardener Amber Tan took a picture of herself with her ornamental quince which had flowered again, and she also photographed a rhododenron which had flowered again.
Yesterday, as the mercury hit 27c (81f) in Kent and North Wales and 26c (79f) in Dorset, sunseekers flocked to the beach to build sandcastles and enjoy ice creams.
But a few went to even greater heights to soak up the rays – such as the woman who stripped to her underwear and sunbathed on a narrow ledge five storeys above the ground.
Italian Elisabeth Lofaro, 36, who moved to London three weeks ago, had only a dressing gown and a pillow for protection as she balanced next to a satellite dish on a strip of roof outside her West End flat.
She said: ‘It was such a beautiful day, it reminded me of back home. I noticed a few workers in the offices opposite trying not to look at me and found that really funny.'
And a return to her precarious sunbathing spot seems likely, as Met Office forecaster Helen Chivers predicted ‘wall to wall sunshine’ for the rest of the week in England and Wales.
Sunseekers: Those lucky enough not to have to attend work or school headed down to the beach at Camber Sands in East Sussex today
Season of mists: A cottage stands on the frontline as the battle between the heatwave's warm air and colder moorland air sends mist clouds spilling into Swaledale from the Vale of York, North Yorkshire
Dramatic scenes: The current creates unexpectedly beautiful scenes across Yorkshire with the landscape viewed from moor tops
She said: ‘There will be sunshine today, tomorrow and into the weekend. Westerly winds will come in from Monday, so next week will be back to normal temperatures.’
Emma Cooke, 38, from Milton Keynes, Bucks, said: 'July and August just seemed to merge into one long cold and wet period.
'I had some holiday leave to take and when I saw the forecast for the rest of the week I thought I'd treat myself to a few days at the seaside.
'I think we all deserve it after the summer that we have had. I can't believe just how warm it is considering we are nearly into October.'
Summer heights: A woman sunbathes on a precarious ledge outside a fifth-floor flat in London's Mayfair with no guard rail and only a bikini for protection
Making a splash: A woman enjoys the cool fountains of Trafalgar Square in London
Clara Weaver from South Kensington, London with her dogs, Thropper (left) and Trixie cooling off in the hot weather in Hyde Park
Water fight: People enjoying the unseasonably warm weather by frolicking in the sea at Cullercoats on the North East coast
Making a splash: Kat Barwell, 24, cools down in the sea on Fistral Beach, Newquay, Cornwall, as the UK enjoys an Indian Summer
Taking the plunge: A couple of brave girls jump into the sea at Cullercoats on the North East coast
Explaining the heat wave Met Office spokesman Sarah Holland said: 'We have got some high pressure set to the east of us that has brought up southerly winds from France and the Mediterranean.
'The warmest parts of the country will be in the south east where we are expecting temperatures of up to 28C by Friday.
'The average temperature for September is 16C so we are at least 10C above that.
Park life: A woman works on her tan in Hampstead Heath in North London during the midday sun
Bikini time: Personal trainer Tara Hammett makes the most of the warm late September weather with an early morning swim at Langland Bay, Mumbles, near Swansea in south Wales
WHY THE 'SECOND SPRING'?
The Met Office says warm air coming from the warm south of Europe is the reason for unseasonably warm conditions in Britain this week:
'An area of high pressure has developed across much of central Europe, centred on Germany and Poland.
'This high pressure draws up very warm air from a long way south, from parts of France and Spain.
'It comes across a dry continent, removing most of the moisture out of the air. As a result we see very little in the way of cloud, with blue skies and plenty of sunshine.
'As a result the sunshine warms the ground and the ground warms the air so we see high temperatures for this time of the year.'
'An area of high pressure has developed across much of central Europe, centred on Germany and Poland.
'This high pressure draws up very warm air from a long way south, from parts of France and Spain.
'It comes across a dry continent, removing most of the moisture out of the air. As a result we see very little in the way of cloud, with blue skies and plenty of sunshine.
'As a result the sunshine warms the ground and the ground warms the air so we see high temperatures for this time of the year.'
'This weather should last into the weekend but we expect it to drop off by the early part of next week with cooler temperatures and some patchy rain.'
Another Met Office spokesman says an area of high pressure has developed across much of central Europe, centred on Germany and Poland, which is the reason for this week's warm weather.
'This high pressure draws up very warm air from a long way south, from parts of France and Spain,' he said.
'It comes across a dry continent, removing most of the moisture out of the air. As a result we see very little in the way of cloud, with blue skies and plenty of sunshine.
'As a result the sunshine warms the ground and the ground warms the air so we see high temperatures for this time of the year.'
The Met Office said that despite many media reports calling the warm weather an ‘Indian summer’, it is too early in the year to call it that. An Indian summer is defined as 'a warm, calm spell of weather occurring in autumn, especially in October and November'.
Taking a break: A runner in Hampstead Heath, takes time out of her jog to soak up the sun in north London
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