‘The suit burns’: Madrid’s street performers suffer in record Spanish heat

Carlos, as Sonic the Hedgehog: ‘Awful, awful, awful. The suit burns. But on a good day, I can make €50 or €60.’ Photograph: Sam Jones/The Observer

There are many better places to be in Spain than Madrid when recordbreaking temperatures bring summer’s ruthless heat in spring, prompting government health warnings, action plans from regional authorities and the familiar agonising wait for outdoor public pools to open.

There are also many better places to be in Madrid when the mercury nudges 30C (86F) than under a woolly hat inside a furry Sonic the Hedgehog costume in the elegant, shadeless air fryer that is the Spanish capital’s Plaza Mayor.