Hot weather maps show UK temperatures soaring to 30C in late August - 3 hottest areas

Temperatures could rise as high as 30C in one part of the country in days, maps from this morning suggest. Forecast data collected by WXCHARTS.COM showed the vast majority of England blanketed in dark orange on Monday, August 25, at 6pm UTC (7pm BST), with most max temps ranging from the mid to upper 20s.

Temperatures looked set to be around 28 or 29 around major cities including London and Birmingham, on a balmy day for much of the country. Meanwhile, in an area around Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire the mercury was forecast to rise as high as 30C.

Large parts of Wales looked set to to be slightly cooler with temperatures ranging from around 17-19C in coastal areas, and max temperatures of around 22 or 23C inland, with temperatures appearing to rise to 28C around the border with England.

Temperatures could be as high as 25C as far north as Newcastle, though parts of the North West up into southern Scotland could be slightly cooler.

Temps north of the border look set to range from around 15C in coastal areas at their height, up to 22 or 23 in major cities including Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Aberdeen.

Top temperatures in Northern Ireland were forecast to be between 19 and 20 in the map from this morning.

The Met Office's long-range forecast for the UK, covering Friday, August 22 to Sunday, August 31, suggests high pressure is "likely to be the dominant feature at first, bringing widely fine and dry weather whilst a generally northerly flow leads to rather cool conditions".

"This will be increasingly eroded from the west as frontal systems start to move in from the Atlantic through the weekend, leading to more changeable conditions," the government agency continues.

"Whilst this is happening a deep area of low pressure is likely to develop in the North Atlantic, linked to Hurricane Erin. This likely progresses towards the UK through the early part of the week.

"The changeable period will likely continue through the last week of August, especially in the north and west, with a small chance of widely wetter and windier weather developing," however, it adds that the "evolution of this is highly uncertain".

Meanwhile today is expected to bring a "rather cloudy start across central and eastern areas but the cloud will slowly retreat back towards North Sea coasts".

"Sunny spells elsewhere, although some showers affecting the far southwest. Warm in the sunshine, but rather cool along eastern coasts."

Tonight, the Met Office is forecasting a "few showers continuing to affect the southwest overnight, perhaps turning thundery at times. Otherwise North Sea cloud probably expanding back inland, with a little drizzle in places."