Scottish village hits record high

Aultbea's average temperature is 12C (pic: Undiscovered Scotland)

A remote crofting community in the north-west of Scotland has experienced the UK's warmest 27 October on record.

Aultbea, in the Highlands, reached 21.2C (70.1F), beating 1888's record 20.3C - which was measured in London.

Scores of temperatures above 20C were recorded across the country, as warm southerly winds brought balmy air up to Britain from North Africa.

A Met Office spokesman said the weekend would be cooler, but added that winter was "still some way off".

The average daily temperature at this time of year for southern England is around 14C, and around 12C for north west Scotland.

In meteorological terms winter is December, January and February Met Office spokesman Mercury rising

Yet temperatures rose above 20C in London, Edinburgh, North Wales and many other parts of the country.

Winds from the south of France and Africa were bringing the warm air, said BBC forecaster Nina Ridge.

The weather is set to change on Friday, with rain on its way, although Saturday will be a fine day for most, she said.

The Met Office said while the current warm weather could not be directly linked to global warming, the overall trend showed temperatures were hotting up.

They had been warning of a colder-than-average winter, and a Met Office spokesman said this was still possible.

"We are nowhere near winter," he said. "In meteorological terms winter is December, January and February."

Although Aultbea registered the warmest 27 October, the highest October day on record was 29C.