Bookmaker Coral has cut the odds of the Platinum Jubilee weekend being a scorcher. It is also expecting May to be a record and is saying this summer is odds-on to be the hottest ever.
It is now offering 4-5 on temperatures hitting 30C over the extended bank holiday as the Queen celebrates 70 years on the throne between Thursday, June 2, and Sunday, June 5. It is also offering 5-4 for a record hot May and 1-2 for this summer being the UK's hottest ever.
“Our betting suggests we could be set for glorious weather during the Platinum Jubilee weekend, as we make it odds-on for temperatures to reach as high as 30C,” said Coral’s John Hill. “Looking further ahead, the odds continue to fall on this summer being the hottest ever in the UK."
Coral’s UK weather odds
1-2 Record hot summer
4-5 30C or higher during Platinum Jubilee weekend
5-4 Record hot May
This week has seen the hottest day of the year so far, when temperatures climbed to 27.5°C at Heathrow Airport on Tuesday.
Giving her weather outlook for the run-up to the Jubilee, Sky News weather producer Kirsty McCabe told the Daily Star: "At the moment it looks as though the weather will turn drier and increasingly settled as we head towards the end of May, with high pressure becoming the dominant feature into the first week of June. That means we can expect largely dry, settled and warm conditions with a royally good amount of sunshine for the Jubilee weekend."
The Met Office's long-range forecast says: "Into June, temperatures are likely to be above average across the south but closer to average further north. Toward mid-June it may turn less settled across the north of the UK, bringing rain or showers, while the south may remain largely fine."
