IT is set to be a hot one this weekend in Winchester, with temperatures hitting 30C on Saturday as heatwave conditions are possible for many parts of the UK.

On Sunday the Met Office is predicting a high of 29C with temperatures rising slightly back up to 30C on Monday.

A statement on its website said: “Early cloud Thursday breaking to very warm sunny spells by the afternoon.

“Sunny, and turning hot, potentially very hot Friday. Variable cloud, sunny spells, and likely hot again Saturday.”

Popular tourist spots on the continent including Ibiza, Lisbon and Berlin are recording similar temperatures of 30C (86F), 29C (84.2F) and 31C (87.8F) respectively.

Met Office forecaster Bonnie Diamond said the hot weather will be part of a "warm spell across the UK" but the highest temperatures are expected to be "focused in the south-east of England".

She added: "At the minute, and with high confidence, we are expecting 34C to 36C by Friday and Saturday."

These high temperatures are the result of southerly winds moving from Europe and high pressure patterns that are set to kick in from around Thursday.

Ms Diamond said: "The pressure pattern is generally high so in combination with the southerly winds and high pressure we get settled, sunny and hot weather."

It comes after temperatures reached 37.8C at Heathrow Airport at 2.41pm and 37.3C at Kew Gardens, in west London on Friday, making it the third hottest day recorded in the UK.

The highest UK temperature, 38.7C, was recorded in Cambridge University Botanic Garden on July 25 2019.

The second hottest day was a recorded at 38.5C in Faversham, Kent, on August 10 2003.