Southern England saw not only its driest July but also its driest month ever recorded, amid what the Met Office called one of the “most notable summer months” since records began.
Just 1.9mm rain was measured across this part of the country, narrowly beating the previous record low of 2.0mm in February 1891.
Last month was also the driest July for England and Wales since records began in 1836, according to provisional figures released.
England saw just 6.5mm of rain across July, or 10% of the long-term average for the month, less than half of the previous record of 13.4mm set in 1911.
Wales had 9.3mm of rainfall, or 9% of the average, again well below the previous record of 22.6mm set in 1911.
Northern Ireland saw its eighth driest July, with 26.9mm of rain, the equivalent of 30% the average for the month.
Scotland was the only nation not to trouble the record books last month, with 69% of its average rainfall.
The UK as a whole experienced its third driest July, with 28.9mm of rain: the lowest figure for the month since 1868.
July was a double-record breaker, with both Englad and Wales experiencing their sunniest July since data began as well as their driest.
England clocked up 305.6 hours of sunshine across the month, surpassing the previous July record of 294.8 hours set in 1911, while Wales saw 308.0 hours, beating the previous record of 297.5 hours in 1955.
Met Office sunshine data begins in 1910.
Wales also equalled its record for the highest mean temperature across the month, at 17.8C, matching the figure reached in 2006.
England saw its second warmest July on record, with a mean temperature of 19.2C, just below the record of 19.3C set in 2006.
Met Office temperature data starts in 1884.
