* Header image courtesy of Duncan Blakemore – Thunderstorm over Toft Hill
The very dry weather of Spring continued.
June began in a very similar way to June 2024. A few days of faux-warmth, followed by a lull back into the teens, then much warmer in the second half. Although there were 11 days with rain in the first half of the month, it only amounted to 23 mm.
Thunderstorm warnings were in place around the 14th, but none materialised in Durham. The weather continued generally warm though, with all the remaining consecutive days reaching 20ºC from the 11th.
Around 20th and 21st, the weather became very hot again, with 30.5ºC recorded on the 20th. On the following day there was a threat of thunderstorms again, and this time they materialised. The Dew Point reached over 20ºC on the 21st. The minimum temperature on the 21st was 19.0ºC.
Temperatures reduced on 22nd as cooler air moved in, but it heated up again, reaching 30.8ºC on the 30th, making that the hottest day.
Data from T. Burt at Durham University reveals June 2025 to be the 2nd warmest on record at Durham, behind June 1846.
The final rainfall total came to 31.6 mm spread over 15 days. So, the great drought continues, with only 181.3 mm in total for the first half of the year.
Trevor Harley’s summary of June 2025
Very warm overall. A month with several hot spells.
The month had an unsettled start, with some welcome rain for many areas. There was a Spanish Plume on the 13th, with the hottest day of the year so far (29.4ºC at Santon Downham, Suffolk, on the 13th). There were some thunderstorms and heavy rain; the storms were severe in the far southeast and east of East Anglia. Over 30,000 lightning strikes were recorded overnight 14-15th in England in these storms, and Manston (Kent) received 50 mm of rain.
After a cooler break, it turned very hot again, reaching 32.2ºC at Kew Gardens and Heathow on the 19th, 30.9ºC at Heathow on the 20th, and 33.2ºC Charlwood (Surrey) on the 21st (the hottest day of the month and year so far).
There was a band of vigorous thunderstorms across northern England and southern Scotland, heading to the NE, on the night of the 21st. There was another heatwave in the southeast at the end of the month: 31.3ºC (Heathrow, 28th), 31.0ºC St James Park, London, 29th, 33.1ºC Heathrow 30th). It is the hottest opening day at the Wimbledon Tennis Championship on record, with 32.3ºC (on Monday 30th).
These are the highest temperatures in June since 2020. There was some talk of the record for June being broken, but in the end these temperatures, although high for June, and until recently would have been exceptionally so, did not come close.
Weather Stats for June 2025 at Durham
Mean Temp : 16.7ºC (+3.0)
Mean Max : 22.0ºC (+4.0)
Mean Min : 12.7ºC (+3.4)
Absolute Max : 30.8ºC on 30th
Absolute Min : 8.0ºC on 4th
Air Frosts : 0
Total Rain : 31.6 mm (-29.4)
Wettest Day : 5.5 mm on 7th
Rain Days : 15
Average per rain day : 2.1 mm
Barometer Max : 1031.3 mb
Barometer Min : 999.5 mb
Barometer Mean : 1016.8 mb
Predominant Weather : A 2.0