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Britons hit the beach as 20C temperatures rival those in sunny Spain - with a mini-heatwave on the way this weekend
Last updated at 15:52pm on 23.04.08The early blossom and yawning hedgehogs have been insisting it is spring for weeks.
Yesterday it finally felt like it.
Temperatures reached a balmy 20c (67f) in London, with large parts of the country basking in sunshine.
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Fun in the sun: Max Jones, three, enjoys the spring weather on Bournemouth beach
The chilly and wet weekend most of us had just shivered through was forgotten in a pleasant haze of golden sunshine and blue skies.
Weathermen said temperatures are expected to rise again over the next few days, nudging a summery 21c (70f) by the weekend.
Yesterday's sunshine was particularly welcome after an icy March and April, which saw some areas blanketed in two inches of snow.
"The big difference is we've started to lose the chilly easterly winds that we've been having, which has really taken the cold edge off," explained Met Office spokesman John Hammond.
"The winds have brought dry air with them, and that means less cloud, and where the sun has broken through we've really seen the temperatures responding.
"The lighter winds are helping to make it feel really warm like the pleasant spring days that we've been missing."
Temperatures reached around 19c (65f) in the West Country, Midlands and North-West of England yesterday which Mr Hammond said was "well above average".
However, while the warmth will continue, there will also be bands of cloud and rain moving across the country.
This means more unsettled weather to come.
Yesterday in Bournemouth they were making the most of the glorious sunshine.
Seven miles of golden sand was packed with families.
Debbie Morgan, 31, from nearby Ferndown, was on the beach with her daughter Daisy, three, and son William, six months.
"It was quite cloudy when we got up but by mid-morning the sun had come out so we headed for the beach. It is so hot it could be summer," she said.
"Hopefully this lovely weather means we have finally put winter behind us."
A spokesman for the resort's Beach Office said: "It is lovely and warm out.
"Some people have been paddling on the shoreline and a few braver people have even been swimming."
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A couple enjoyed the sun in Bournemouth today as temperatures hit 18C
Teenagers made to most of the sunshine today when that played a game of volleyball on the beach in Bournemouth
Eleanor Crompton, a forecaster at the Met Office, said the temperatures matched those in southern Spain.
"It is feeling very pleasant and there is lots of sunshine about," she said.
"We are currently in between two low pressure systems.
"This is causing the warm weather and over the next few days, pressure will build making it remain fine for a time.
"Cloud will bubble up later, though."
Students lazed around by the River Cam in Cambridge
