At last! It might have taken until the middle of July, but today is the hottest day of the year, so far.

The thermometer has reached 29 degrees Celsius, or 84 degrees in old money.

But, if you want to enjoy the sunshine you’ll have to be quick because The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for rain, and even hail, valid from 5pm today until 6pm on Wednesday.

The warning says there is potential for some severe thunderstorms to develop across Wales, northern England and the Midlands.

Bradford Telegraph and Argus:

The area covered by The Met Office's weather warning.

“Here, the risk is greatest during Wednesday, by which time the risk of storms will be reducing across the west of the yellow area - and then finally also reducing across the east of the area by Wednesday evening.

“Whilst most places will miss the worst, please be aware of the risk of flash flooding. Frequent lightning, large hail and strong winds could be additional hazards. All of this could lead to some flooding of homes, businesses and transport networks. Disruption to power is also possible,” it says.

In parts of the UK, the mercury has soared to the mid-30s today.

Steven Keates, senior forecaster with the Met Office, said: "Things will cool down a bit overnight into Wednesday, but even then it will still be the mid-20s."

Mr Keates said there will be a handful of isolated thunder storms before the week was out, but that temperatures would largely remain above average for the time of year.

Check the latest weather forecast here.

Where are you enjoying the sunshine?

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