Drivers in England urged to put blankets on car until Tuesday

Drivers in England are being urged to put blankets on their cars until at least Tuesday thanks to the scorching weather returning this weekend.

Right now, conditions across much of the UK are mixed, with rain, clouds and sunshine all making temperatures unpredictable. But this Sunday and Monday, the weather is set to go back to scorching, with the Met Office predicting highs of 31C on Sunday and a truly staggering 36C on Monday in parts of the UK, then 31C on Tuesday.

One key problem for drivers is that the hot sun bakes straight through windscreens, heating up cars and making the steering wheel, seats and interior in general red hot to the touch and stuffy inside, which can be hard to counteract even with aircon running.

According to Car Supermarket, a blanket over your car can help protect it from the heat.

It says: "As Britain swelters under an unprecedented heatwave, motorists are being offered some rather unusual advice: cover your car with a blanket. Yes, you read that right. The RAC, those stalwart knights of the roadside, have suggested that drivers drape their vehicles in blankets to keep them cool. It's the kind of advice that makes you wonder if we've finally succumbed to the heat and gone a bit barmy.

"But before you dismiss this as the ravings of a sun-stroked mind, there's actually some method to this madness. The idea, apparently, is to create a barrier between your car's interior and the scorching sun, much like closing the curtains in your house. It's particularly useful for protecting those touch points like the steering wheel and gear lever, which can become hot enough to fry an egg on in extreme conditions."

The Met Office said about Monday's weather: "A further heatwave building from the weekend and peaking into the early part of next week is likely to bring the highest temperatures of the year so far to the UK."

Mike Silverstone is a Deputy Chief Meteorologist at the Met Office. He said: “Higher temperatures building over the weekend and into early next week will bring particularly warm, hot or even very hot conditions for some, especially in the South East and East Anglia and more locally elsewhere in England and east Wales. This in part will be influenced by a heatwave developing across western Europe.”

Mike added: “By the weekend, an area of high pressure will be intensifying and dominating the UK forecast. Conditions will be hottest in the south and east while areas further north and north-west will be relatively cooler.”