Temperatures in England to hit highest of the year

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/jul/03/temperatures-england-highest-year

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Parts of England will sizzle on Thursday with temperatures expected to reach the highest so far this year, beating Portugal, Turkey and Spain.

The London and Essex area will be drenched in sunshine as the mercury rises to 27C (80.6F), and possibly 28C.

British hopes for Wimbledon might have been dashed with the exit of Andy Murray, but tennis fans looking forward to day 11 of the action at the All England Club can be consoled with a dry, warm day.

MeteoGroup forecaster Sean Penston said: "Fair weather cloud will clear in the late morning to leave plenty of sunshine with a pleasant south-westerly breeze."

The hottest temperature so far this year was in Southampton where 26.8C was recorded on 13 June, according to MeteoGroup.

There will be patchy rain in northern England, parts of Wales and Northern Ireland for a time, with a few showers in western Scotland.

Predictions of 27C mean central England will be warmer than Faro in Portugal, a degree warmer than Barcelona in Spain, and much hotter than Istanbul in Turkey, where a high of 24C is expected.

The warm weather will roll over to Friday but is likely to give way to a cooler weekend, Penston said, with temperatures dropping to about 20C or 21C.

Finalists at Wimbledon could have to contend with some showers on Saturday and Sunday.

"I wouldn't rule out an isolated shower on Saturday and there is a risk of a few sharp showers on Sunday," said Penston.