1976 heatwave vs 2022 - how today's hottest temperature in UK compares

The UK is in the midst of its most blistering heatwave ever, which saw the record for 'hottest day' broken twice on Tuesday (July 19). The new record was documented at Heathrow Airport as the temperature hit 40.2C, just hours after Surrey recorded new highs of 39.1C.

The previous UK record was broken three years prior, when it reached 38.7C in Cambridge University Botanic Garden on 25 July 2019. The current conditions have reminded many of the summer of 1976, which saw one of the longest heatwaves in living memory.

But just how does this spell of weather compare to that of 46 years ago? Nigel Arnell, professor of climate system science at the University of Reading, says it was hot in 1976, but not as “extremely hot” as it is currently.

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He said the impacts of that hot summer have been forgotten, and added: “It was disruptive. And it wasn’t really as extreme in temperature as what we’re experiencing at the moment.”

In 1976 temperatures across the UK soared to over 32C. During the heatwave the country's highest ever temperature at the time was recorded when it reached 35.9C in Cheltenham - making the peak of this year's heatwave 4.3C hotter.

The prolonged sunshine and heat in the 70s lasted for over a fortnight and alongside it came the worst drought in over a century. Some parts of the South West even went 45 days without rain and the extreme heat was thought to be behind a 20% increase in excess deaths, reports the Mirror.

It seems as though this year's heatwave won't last quite as long, with rain and thunderstorms expected for much of the UK as the week goes on. The Met Office forecasts that, while