As the mercury in Britain reached up to 28C, Britons dared to debut their summer wardrobe. The unseasonably fine and hot weather continued yesterday, with Southampton again enjoying the highest temperature of 27.9°C. The south coast city had already topped the mercury on Wednesday.

It was closely followed on Thursday by Wisley in Surrey, where temperatures reached 27.5°C, while it was 27.3°C in Bishopton, near Glasgow.

And the Met Office forecast the summer weather will remain until after the weekend.

However. coastal areas were cooler, especially in the east where it struggled to get above 18°C.

Average maximum temperatures for England in May are 14-17C, while Scotland would normally be 13-15C.

Thousands of sun worshippers around the country flocked to beaches and parks to bask in the sunshine, as conditions were hotter than many popular European destinations.

Party island Ibiza was 25C, sunny but windy Malta was 22C, Italian capital Rome 22C, while Barcelona in Spain lagged behind at 21°C.

Forecaster Gemma Plumb said: “Most places were dry and very warm with sunshine. Temperatures are above the average.”

And the warmth will apparently last for several more days.

“Most of the UK will be sunny and very warm on Saturday (today),” she added. “Sunday (tomorrow) will continue to be dry and sunny although there may be more cloud about.”

“Saturday (today) should see temperatures of between 24°C and 27°C, she said, while Sunday (tomorrow) is likely to be between 22 and 25°C,” she said.

“There’s a risk of a few showers across the southwest of the UK, but most places should stay dry and sunny.”

However, as Britons bask in the sunshine, filling parks and busy seafronts, the Met Office says southern areas are likely to become unsettled again next week, dampening the Jubilee Weekend.