The First Warning
On the morning of 25 May 2026, weather stations across southern England began registering temperatures that meteorologists initially assumed were instrument errors. By mid-afternoon, Kew Gardens in west London recorded 34.8°C — the hottest May day in British history . The following day, the same station pushed the record to 35.1°C . In Paris, commuters descended into Metro stations seeking relief from air that felt like high summer, though the calendar insisted it was still spring. The average temperature across France that week climbed to levels not seen in any May since record-keeping began in 1900 .