Ready to sizzle! Britain is set for its hottest day of the year TODAY as temperatures soar to 95F

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Sunseekers surged to beauty spots and beaches across Britain today to enjoy a day out or staycation on what is expected to be the hottest day of the year with temperatures set to reach 95F (35C).

The blistering heat will encourage more to focus on enjoying their summer at home, with many coastal favourites now fully booked until the end of September as holidaymakers opt for UK breaks rather than risking foreign travel.

The hottest places today are set to be in South East England, which could see 95F (35C). However, even Leeds and Manchester are set to reach 88F (31C), while 79F (26C) is expected in Newcastle upon Tyne and in West Wales.

Temperatures will mirror those in Ibiza and Spain’s Costa del Sol, with UK sunseekers already enjoying the warmth yesterday on what was Britain’s hottest day of July so far as temperatures hit 85.5F (29.7C). 

Traffic was heavy on various major roads into seaside resorts this morning, including the A23 into Brighton, and M27 and A31 into Bournemouth – with congestion in the Dorset town up 18 per cent on normal 2019 levels. 

But the heat could end with a bang later this afternoon, with the Met Office issuing a warning for thunderstorms and up to 0.8in (20mm) of rain in an hour in some areas of eastern England between 4pm and midnight.

Forecasters warned of damage to some buildings from lightning strikes, power cuts, delays to train services, flooding to some homes and businesses and driving conditions being affected by spray, standing water and hail.

Foreign summer holidays are now looking increasingly risky after the Government’s last-minute announcement on Sunday that those travelling from Spain now need to self-isolate for 14 days following a spike in cases. 

But disappointed holiday-goers no longer going abroad will be pleased that popular spots in Europe including Ibiza, Lisbon and Berlin will fall short of the UK high, reaching 91F (33C), 86F (30C) and 77F (25C) respectively. 

Britain’s warmest day of the year so far was June 25 with 92.1F (33.4C) recorded at London Heathrow Airport,  while the hottest day ever recorded in the UK was July 25 last year when Cambridge got up to 101.3F (38.7C).  

Yesterday, thousands descended on resorts from Cornwall to sunspots such as Lyme Regis in Dorset and Camber Sands in East Sussex as they soaked up the heat – mirroring scenes in May as lockdown restrictions were eased.

The sea at Woolacombe in Devon was busy with surfers as families crowded on to the popular beach. Holiday sites in the South West of England are getting booked up for the rest of the season amid the staycation boom.

A survey by MailOnline yesterday checked with 20 of the top campsites in Cornwall and 15 in Dorset if they had any space for two adults to stay a week from today. Not one had a spare lodge, pitch or campervan space.

In other places prices have soared, with one four-star hotel in Newquay, Cornwall, costing almost £350 a night. The current warm spell is due to a plume of warm air being drawn north from France and Spain. 

Beachgoers have been urged to take precautions, including wearing sun cream and hats, as levels of ultraviolet radiation are predicted to be high.

But the heatwave is not due to last long as cooler conditions will move in through tomorrow and Sunday.

Andy Page from the Met Office said: ‘The bulk of England and Wales will have dry, very warm and sunny weather to end the week with Friday likely to be the hottest day of the year so far for the UK. 

‘A few thunderstorms are possible later on Friday and then a cold front moves eastwards by Saturday.’ 

Tomorrow, temperatures are expected to reach only 77F (25C) in London and East Anglia. Further west and north, temperatures are unlikely to exceed 72F (22C).

The heatwave comes after what forecasters describe as an ‘autumnal’ start to the week, when an ‘unseasonably deep area of low pressure crossed the UK’.

It brought winds of up to 50mph, while 35.8mm (1.4 inches) of rain was recorded in Shap, Cumbria, on Monday.

The current warm spell, which began yesterday, involves a plume of warm air being drawn north from France and Spain by southerly winds. 

The only respite from the heat could be in parts of Devon and Cornwall, where there is a chance of cloudier conditions. 

Isolated thundery showers could be sparked by the high temperatures.

A mixture of sunny spells, cloud and scattered showers is expected on Sunday. 

For the first week and a half of August, the Met Office predicts the unsettled conditions ‘are likely to continue, with outbreaks of rain and scattered showers affecting all parts of the United Kingdom at times’.

Its forecast for the next ten days states: ‘The heaviest and most prolonged spells of rain are likely to be focussed towards the northwest, where it may also become quite windy at times with a risk of gales in exposed locations.

‘However, there should still be some drier and brighter spells in between the outbreaks of rain, with the driest of these conditions expected towards the South East.

‘Temperatures are likely to be slightly below average for this time of year, but perhaps near normal towards the South East.’ 

The short-lived heatwave comes at the end of an unseasonably chilly July. The UK average temperature for this July is currently on course to be just 57.4F (14.1C) – lower than the 1981-2010 long-term average of 59.3F (15.2C).

Britain has already surpassed 100 per cent of the average monthly rainfall and only experienced two thirds (66 per cent) of the expected sunshine for an average July, a total of 113.4 hours, Met Office figures show.

It said: ‘We’ve not seen a temperature anywhere above 30C so far or even with a three in it, that is quite unusual for July. In terms of shifting the overall weather stats for the month, it’s not going to do much to the average.’