A heat wave leaves Britons looking for ways to stay cool

Boston Globe

21-06-2025

'A lot more of my friends now have air conditioning,' Youssef said. 'People wouldn't have thought about air conditioning five years or so ago.'
As the United States sweats through its own run of high heat, temperatures in Britain have been above the seasonal average for days. The country was forecast to officially tip into the first heat wave of the year Saturday, with a high of 34 degrees Celsius, or about 93 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the Met Office, Britain's weather service.
The average high for June is around 64 Fahrenheit, and many homes are designed to retain heat, given Britain's historically cooler climate. But high temperatures have become more common in the past few years. And climate scientists have warned that heat waves will become more intense as the planet grows warmer.
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In recent days, some U.K. schools have allowed children to wear their own clothes rather than school uniforms, or at least to leave the ties and blazers at home. People who would normally work from home went to the office for the air conditioning. Robert Dyas, a national retailer of housewares and appliances, said that its stores have seen a 4,000% increase in the sale of fans and air conditioning units from 2019 to 2024.
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Richard Salmon, director of the Air Conditioning Co. in London, said that his business has boomed as temperatures have risen, with demand for portable air conditioning units increasing by 625% compared with last year.
'You'd be amazed how many orders we get between 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. from customers who can't sleep because of the heat,' he said. He planned to open the warehouse before 6 a.m. Saturday in anticipation of the weekend's high heat.
For Britain's more vulnerable, the heat poses a health risk. The U.K. Health Security Agency issued an amber-level heat health alert across the whole of England through Monday, meaning that significant effects are likely across health and social care services, including a rise in deaths.
Care UK, which operates 165 elder care homes across the country, said it would focus on keeping residents hydrated with icy treats and a specially formulated tea.
'It can be tricky for those caring for a loved one to ensure they drink enough, but little things can make a big difference,' said Andrew Mussett, the group's nutritionist.
In London, the mayor's office has designated hundreds of 'cool spaces,' public spaces offering shelter from the sun. At one of them, the St. Luke's Community Center in the Islington area of North London, Collin Browne watched the Royal Ascot horse racing event on television while a portable fan blasted cool air onto his face. Across the room, another fan whirred.
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'I don't cope,' Browne said of the heat. 'When it's muggy, I just get very irritable.'
For others, the warmer summers are bringing more mixed feelings. On Clapham Common, a grassy expanse in South London, friends and co-workers Darcey Wilkinson and Finty Willis enjoyed the sun, as they studied for an insurance industry exam on a picnic blanket.
'I can't believe this is the U.K., and I feel like there's definitely a consciousness of 'Is this normal?'' Willis said.
In their first year of professional work since graduating from university, Wilkinson and Willis said that they had taken advantage of their office's air conditioning, and had to budget for a much lighter summer wardrobe than they had expected.
Across the grass, dozens of children squealed under the neon pink and orange sprinklers spinning in the splash bath. Emily Williams, 34, has enjoyed the common's fountains since she was a child and brought her 19-month-old daughter, who was wearing a soaking wet hat to keep cool.
'I don't remember it being this hot, but I remember having great summers,' Williams said.
For many Britons, air conditioning remains out of reach, and the best way to beat the heat is to cool down outside.
With an ice cream cone in one hand and a pint in the other, Chris Warren led his friends to a shaded spot in a square outside the Rose and Crown pub in Clapham's Old Town Square.
'I love the heat,' Warren, 31, said.
'I'm Scottish -- it's too hot for me,' said Ryan Wilkin, 31, as he fanned himself. 'I can't deal with this.'
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