A NEW record temperature in the Bradford district - and possibly Yorkshire - has been set for February today.

The temperature reached 18.5 degrees Centigrade at the Met Office's weather station in Bingley at 1pm this afternoon.

The figure is believed to be a record for the district.

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/public/weather/observation/gcwdjeczy via @metoffice

The previous record for Yorkshire was 18C.

Bradford could be set to have its warmest February on record with the average temperature looking set to beat the best average high of 10.3 recorded in 1998 at Lister Park weather station.

This year is a complete contrast to last year when temperatures struggled above freezing at the end of the month as the Beast from the East hit and the average high during February was 5.2 degrees C, below the long-term average of 6 degrees.

Across the UK today, new records for the warmest winter day since records began were set for the second day running.

Records were broken in England and Wales, as temperatures edged towards 21C (69.8F) and Britons continued to enjoy a spell of unseasonably mild weather.

Temperatures hit 20.8C (69.4F) in Porthmadog, Gwynedd, West Wales, at 1.22pm, the Met Office said.

And 20.7C (69.2F) was recorded around half an hour later in Teddington, south-west London.

On Monday, the thermometer reached 20.6C (68.5F) at Trawsgoed in Ceredigion, West Wales, the highest recorded in February and beating the previous record of 19.7C (67.4F) in Greenwich, south-east London, in 1998.

Parts of Britain on Tuesday were hotter than a series of popular holiday destinations, beating Malibu, Athens and Barcelona.

Holidaymakers hoping to catch rays in Crete will be bitterly disappointed, with the island seeing 1.2in (300mm) of rain on Monday and a maximum temperature of 13C (55.4F) forecast for Tuesday.

The Met Office has predicted maximum temperatures of 21C (69.8F) on Tuesday in areas across the South and South East of England.

Asked if the mercury is likely to rise during the afternoon, forecaster Alex Burkill said: "I think it could do - temperatures are still climbing."