Londoners enjoyed the warm weather and got out to make the most of the sunshine (Picture: REX)
Brits basked in the Winter sunshine as temperatures rocketed to nearly 23 degrees this weekend.
The mercury rose to well above the average top temperature for October, which is just 15C.
Sunbathers got out the lotion for possibly the last time this year, as they filled parks to enjoy the warm weather yesterday.
The unseasonal weather is a result of a jet stream – which normally comes across the Atlantic more directly – taking a big loop down south and then coming back up and bringing all the southerly air with it, the Met Office has said.
Londoners in St James Park enjoyed reading the news in the sunshine (Picture: Amer Ghazzal/Shutterstock)
The warm weather was thanks to a jetstream bringing southern hot air to parts of the UK (Picture: Amer Ghazzal/Shutterstock)
Parts of the UK reached temperatures as high as 22.9 degrees (Picture: Amer Ghazzal/Shutterstock)
Parts of the south coast basked in the ‘Indian summer’ weather (Picture: Met Office)
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The top temperature yesterday was 22.9 degrees in Kew Gardens.
But it is still a long way off October’s record high – 29.9C (85.8F) – set in Gravesend in 2011.
The maximum average temperature in October in southern England is 14C or 15C, but places are seeing potential highs of early 20s over the next couple of days.
Met Office meteorologist Mr Madge said of the temperatures: ‘It’s unusual, but not exceptional.
‘It’s perhaps slightly more unusual as well in that it has been a prolonged weather pattern.
‘The weather pattern that’s bringing us this flow of warm air has been quite stubborn and persistent.
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‘And we’ve been in this pattern for a number of days. It’s led some people to suggest that it’s an Indian summer, but we’re not agreeing with that.
‘Traditionally an Indian summer would be where you get sunshine and still dry conditions, and obviously we’ve had quite a lot of wind.
‘It’s only the temperatures that are warmer than average.’
People may see a slightly cooler end to the weekend though, with many central and eastern areas starting dry with sunny spells.
Although there will be more showers further west, some heavy with hail and thunder, moving eastwards by the afternoon.
Tomorrow central, southern and eastern Britain will be mostly dry with broken cloud and sunny spells.
Western areas will also be turning wet and windy with some heavy rain in places.
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The mercury ended up soaring thanks to a jet-stream of hot air moving from the tropics in the south.