Britain was enjoying fresher and cooler weather today after the scorching heatwave came to a dramatic end last night when thunderstorms struck.
Despite temperatures peaking at 91.8F (33.2C) yesterday in Gravesend, Kent, the warm weather went out with a bang as thunderstorms arrived across the county – as forecasters warned of the risk of hail and flash flooding.
The stormy weather appeared to clear away shortly after midnight. Now, significantly cooler weather is being felt across the country today, with highs of 73F (23C) and lows of 57F (14C) expected in the South East.
A beautiful sunrise early this morning on the beach at Whitley Bay in North Tyneside as conditions begin to cool down

Thunderstorms struck across parts of England last night, including at Broadstairs in Kent (pictured)

Lightning lit up the sky above Medway in Kent last night as a storm rolled across the south east coast


Lightning could be seen off the coast of Brighton last night. Now the storms have cleared, fresher weather will be felt

Lightning was also spotted across West Sussex early yesterday evening

People who flocked to Bournemouth beach to enjoy the weather were left holding umbrellas as it rained yesterday

Dark clouds massed above the London skyline at 4pm yesterday as predicted thunderstorms approached Canary Wharf
Frank Saunders, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said: ‘After weeks of predominantly high temperatures and very little rainfall for many parts of the country, high pressure is finally breaking down allowing a cold front to introduce cooler, fresher air from the Atlantic to all parts of the UK.
‘Temperatures will still often be in the low to mid-20Cs (mid-70Fs) in eastern parts of England for the rest of this week, which although is above average for the time of year, will be notably cooler than recent weeks.
‘Elsewhere, temperatures in Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and western England will be closer to average, the high teens being typical.’
Met Office forecaster Dean Hall added that there will be ‘quite a marked change to the feel of things’ from the middle of the week as conditions turn ‘fresher and more changeable’.
It is likely to stay cooler throughout next weekend, he said, with ‘no real sign of any return of the heat that we have been seeing over the recent days’.


Temperatures are expected to fall to around 73F (23C) today following the heatwave that has hung over Britain


The mercury will remain in the low 70Fs (low 20Cs) tomorrow and on Friday as Britain experiences much cooler weather


A yellow thunderstorm warning was issued for the south east coast last night (left) as lightning struck across Kent (right)
And his colleague Craig Snell said: ‘Fresher weather will spread south and east and it will be with us for the rest of the week, into the weekend.
‘Temperatures will be down to the low 20Cs (low 70Fs) in the south and east, and high teens Celsius (mid-60Fs) elsewhere, but although it will feel cooler, those figures are around normal for the time of year.’
Mr Snell said there is the chance of showery rain at times over the coming days, most likely tomorrow, when there could also be thunder in the South East.
The top temperature in Britain has been over 75F (24C) for 46 days in a row up to and including yesterday. Of those 46 days, some 29 have seen temperatures of at least 85F (29.4C), while ten have been at least 90F (32C).
The hottest day of 2018 has been broken six times within the period – including on four days in a row in June. The lowest reading in the 45-day period was 75.2F (24C) on July 28, with the highest at 95.2F (35.1C) two days earlier.

A light drizzle couldn’t stop punters in Cambridge from enjoying the view along the River Cam yesterday

Kent Storm Chasers tweeted this photograph of the ‘first rumbles of thunder and strike seen in Dover’ yesterday afternoon

People sunbathing and swimming in the sea in Bournemouth were forced to take cover as a light rain hit yesterday

People gather under umbrellas at Greenwich Park in South East London yesterday afternoon as the rain begins to fall
And the Met Office said Britain could see warmer-than-average temperatures in the autumn, with settled conditions more likely than unsettled weather from our typical Atlantic weather systems.
The hottest UK day ever recorded was August 10, 2003, when Faversham in Kent made it to 101.3F (38.5C).
The stormy forecast led Ryanair to cancel 14 departures and 13 arrivals at London Stansted Airport yesterday afternoon and evening, with the airline warning customers that they should ‘expect further delays’ later on.
A spokesman said: ‘All affected customers have been contacted by email and text message and advised of their options: a full refund, rebooking on to the next available flight or transferring to an alternative flight.
‘We apologise for any inconvenience caused by this weather disruption, which is entirely beyond our control, and we are working hard to minimise the disruption to our operations.’
Here come the sunflowers (and Beatle the horse)… in a stunning portrait of our glorious summer
Plenty of Brits have spent the past month enjoying the glorious summer, but this picture of a girl and her horse sums up the wonderful weather.
Schoolgirl Sophie Golland, 16, was pictured making the most of the summer holiday heatwave when she rode through her grandfather’s field of sunflowers.
She sat atop her nine-year-old colt Beatle yesterday as the sun beamed down on them in Spalding, Lincolnshire. Sophie’s grandfather Nicholas Watts, 75, grows 100 acres of sunflowers using them to make bird feed.
The striking yellow flowers back onto a scorched field turned brown by the UK’s longest heatwave since 1976.

Sophie Golland, 16, was seen making the most of the heatwave when she rode through her grandfather’s field of sunflowers

Her mother Joanna Golland joined her in the field on her horse Flo in the field near Spalding, Lincolnshire

Sophie’s grandfather Nicholas Watts, 75, grows 100 acres of sunflowers using them to make bird feed