Jamie Whitehead
Live editor

When we use the term "I had a long day", we often mean work was difficult or the kids were playing up.

But today many of us will use the term a lot more literally.

It seems a long time ago now since our colleagues in Bristol brought you their coverage of the summer solstice - the longest day of the year, with record-breaking crowds descending on Stonehenge to celebrate.

As we moved into more regular daylight hours, Charlwood in Surrey recorded the hottest temperature of 2025 so far, reaching 32.6C, which later beat its own record, rising to a provisional 33.2C.

But it's not all pub gardens and ice creams. As we move into the evening, the Met Office's yellow weather warning has just kicked in in parts of northern England and Wales, and there's also flood warnings in place on the Scottish Borders.

We're going to end our live coverage now, but you can keep up-to-date with what's happening in our news story, and you can check your local weather forecast here.

If you're in one of the areas where's it's going to stay hot, here's six ways to keep your home and yourself cool in hot weather. There's also more information on heat health alerts and our lead weather presenter Sarah Keith-Lucas has had a look at whether heatwaves will become the new normal.

While you've been out enjoying the Sun, Rorey Bosotti and I have been locked away in the BBC Newsroom, thank you for joining us.

James W Kelly
BBC News

Image source, ANGLEA LEWIS

Passengers have been forced to evacuate trains in south London as temperatures soared above 30C.

A fault on a train near Loughborough Junction brought all services in the area to a halt, three of them outside station platforms, Thameslink and Network Rail said in a joint statement.

"Without power and air conditioning on such a hot day, we pulled all resources from across Sussex and Kent to get personnel on site to safely evacuate passengers as quickly as possible along the track," it said.

They apologised to affected passengers for the "difficult and uncomfortable experience".

Read more in our news story.

A record-high temperature for the UK of 40.3C was recorded at Coningsby in Lincolnshire on 19 July 2022.

A new record of 34.8C was recorded in Scotland on the same day in Charterhall (Scottish Borders).

In Wales, a temperature of 37.1C was recorded the day before, on 18 July 2022 in Hawarden (Flintshire).

All four UK nations recorded their warmest spring on record in 2025, with Northern Ireland and Scotland seeing temperatures up to 1.6°C above average.

As we mentioned earlier, humans are not the only ones struggling with the heat we've seen over the past couple of days.

Zoo keepers and animal sanctuary volunteers across the West Midlands have been working hard to keep all creatures great and small cool.

From a sea lion enjoying an iced birthday cake to a badger taking a splash in a paddling pool, here's some pictures showing the fun ways people are keeping animals safe during the heatwave:

Image source, Dudley Zoo

Image source, West Midlands Safari Park

Image source, West Midlands Safari Park

Image source, WILD Zoo

Darren Bett
BBC Weather presenter

We may have had the highest temperature of the day already

Cloud and showers are moving eastwards with rain at Headingley and perhaps at Queens for a short while.

Charlwood in Surrey has seen the temperature drop five degrees from the 32.6C a couple of hours ago.

The thunderstorms may still come though. Eyes on the skies over northern England and south-east Scotland in particular this evening.

The Met Office issued a yellow warning for thunderstorms. This is the lowest tier in the weather warning system because of the continued uncertainty.

However, any storms that do develop bring the risk of flooding, large hail and gusty winds before clearing into the North Sea overnight.

A little earlier we reported on a warning that hundreds of people are predicted to die as a result of this week's heatwave.

Experts recommend checking on those who may be more vulnerable, such as older people and babies.

As the body gets hotter, blood vessels open up, leading to lower blood pressure and the heart working harder to push blood around the body. At the same time, sweating leads to the loss of fluids and salt and the combination can lead to heat exhaustion.

Symptoms include dizziness, nausea, fainting, confusion, muscle cramps, headaches, heavy sweating and tiredness.

So what can you do to help your body keep cool? The UK Health Security Agency advises:

• staying cool indoors by closing curtains on rooms that face the sun
• drinking plenty of fluids and avoiding too much alcohol
• keeping out of the sun between 11:00 and 15:00 when the sun's rays are strongest
• staying in the shade, using sunscreen with a high SPF and UVA rating, and wearing a wide-brimmed hat
• avoiding physical exercise in the hottest part of the day

You can read more about the signs of heat exhaustion and how to avoid it in our guide to coping with hot weather.

The Met Office has announced a new provisional high of 33.2C in Charlwood in Surrey.

We'll keep you up to date with the latest temperatures as we get them, and offer advice on how to keep cool!!

All day, you've been sending us your pictures of the hottest day of the year in the UK so far this year.

Image source, Ann 97

Image source, Squiz

Image source, Belfast Camino

Image source, Walking Tractor

If you'd like to send us a picture of what the weather is like where you are, you can get in touch here.

As we've mentioned earlier, there's an amber heat-health alert in place this weekend because of the high temperatures we're seeing.

Amber alerts are issued in situations that could potentially put the whole population at risk.

The NHS may see increased demand on GPs and ambulances, for example. Travel disruption is also likely.

Alerts are categorised according to severity and include:

• headline weather conditions expected in the coming days
• details of how weather conditions will affect each region
• links to additional information, advice and guidance

Temperatures are expected to remain high over the coming days in many parts of the UK, so here are some tips to help you get a good night's sleep during hot weather:

• No napping: Hot weather can make us feel a bit lethargic during the day - when it is hot, sleepiness can be precious so save it for bedtime
• Keep to routines: Hot weather can encourage you to change your habits, however, that can disrupt sleep. Try to keep to your usual bedtime and routines

• Use a fan and chill your socks: Cooling your feet lowers the overall temperature of your skin and body
• Use thin sheets
• Keep hydrated

For more tips, you can check out our story.

Image source, Getty Images

Some areas are at risk of a "tropical night" - where overnight temperatures do not drop below 20C - over the next two days.

On Saturday night, as cooler and fresher air pushes in from the west, the highest overnight temperatures will be restricted to eastern England, where they may fall no lower than 18C.

While heatwave conditions are likely to continue, some relief is anticipated on Sunday, when the south and east of England will dip to the high 20s. Elsewhere, cooler air will gradually sweep in from the west.

Temperatures will drop further into Monday - but could rise towards the heatwave threshold again in the latter half of next week.

Darren Bett
BBC weather presenter

The temperature at Charlwood near Gatwick Airport has reached 32.6C. Today is the hottest day of the year so far.

You can see just how close the cloud and showers are and this will move east and limit any further temperature rise.

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency has issued a flood alert for the Scottish Borders region.

The alert is in response to the thunderstorms forecast over northern England and southern Scotland.

Heavy rainfall is expected, with potential disruption across Roxburghshire and Berwickshire overnight, before easing into Sunday morning.

• You can check weather forecast and any warnings on the BBC Weather site

With temperatures soaring, here's some things you can do to ensure you keep your home cool through the heat:

In flats which have windows on one side only, open doors and use a fan to encourage airflow.

Hot air rises within houses, so if you have loft vents or windows you can open them to release some of the heat. The hot air can otherwise get trapped on the second floor, where you may be trying to sleep.

As we have been reporting, a yellow thunderstorm warning has been issued by the Met Office from 17:00 BST and is in place until 03:00 BST on Sunday.

Thunderstorms may cause some impacts in places on Saturday evening and night:

• Where lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services
• Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some temporary road closures
• There is a small chance that some communities become cut off by flooded roads
• There is a slight chance that power cuts could occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost
• There is a small chance that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes, hail or strong winds

Our colleagues at BBC Weather have sent us the latest forecast for today, which includes information on the thunderstorms we have been telling you about.

The Met Office has issued a yellow thunderstorm warning from 17:00 BST for parts of Wales and the north of England.

Darren Bett
BBC weather presenter

Hot and humid weather has been building in northern and eastern parts on England ahead of cloud and a few showers.

Charlwood in Surrey has reached 32.2C making today the joint warmest day of the year so far.

Temperatures could get a little higher before cloud arrives.

Nearly 600 people in England and Wales are predicted to die as a result of this week's heatwave, researchers have found.

Experts at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and Imperial College London used decades of UK data to predict excess mortality during the hot temperatures from Thursday to Sunday.

Their study forecasts that around 570 people will die because of the heat over the four days - with a peak estimated at 266 on Saturday when the heat will be at its most intense.

The researchers said their assessment highlights how extreme heat poses a growing threat to public health in the UK.

"Heatwaves are silent killers - people who lose their lives in them typically have pre-existing health conditions and rarely have heat listed as a contributing cause of death," says Dr Garyfallos Konstantinoudis, lecturer at the Grantham Institute at Imperial College London.

As we've been reporting, the Met Office has issued a yellow warning as the heatwave intensifies.

With temperatures of up to 34C expected, parts of northern England, the Scottish Borders and Wales, will be under a thunderstorm warning from 17:00 on Saturday until 03:00 on Sunday.

Thunderstorms are expected because the humid weather means there is plenty of moisture in unstable atmospheric conditions.

An amber heat-health alert in England issued by the UK Health Security Agency is also in force until Monday.

Areas potentially affected include:

• East and West Midlands
• North East and North West England
• Scottish Borders
• Parts of Wales, including Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham
• Yorkshire and Humber

Matt Taylor
BBC Weather

There are several different reasons that have come together to cause this current hot spell, not just the obvious answer that “it’s summer”.

Initially we saw an area of high pressure build across the UK. With clear and sunny skies overhead, this helped to warm the ground and air over the UK a bit more with each passing day.

The prolonged dry weather we have experienced recently is another part of the equation.

The ground is still very dry at the moment. A dry ground heats up much quicker than a damp one, as the Sun’s energy isn’t being used to evaporate water, and that dry ground then gives the air temperature an extra boost.

Then over the last few days, as the area of high pressure has drifted east, developing southerly winds have added extra heat (and humidity) from western Europe into the mix, too.

And of course there is the issue of climate change. Whilst summer heatwaves aren’t unusual, climate scientists have told us that global temperature rises are making such heatwaves more common, longer-lasting and more extreme when they occur.