Today is the warmest day of 2016 so far and, believe it or not, the top temperature in the country has been recorded in a north-east village.
The residents of Braemar are no strangers to extreme temperatures – the coldest ever temperature recorded in the UK was -27.2 °C on a chilly Braemar January day in 1982.
But today people in Braemar have swapped their hats, scarves and gloves for sun cream, sombreros and ice cream – with the mercury reaching a rather balmy 17.7°C.
☀️ It's the warmest day of the year so far! 17.7 °C has been recorded at Braemar ☀️
— Met Office (@metoffice) March 17, 2016
The hottest temperature ever recorded in the UK in March came in 1968 when Mepal in Cambridgeshire recorded a stunning 25.6°C.
Today is also the spring equilux, meaning days will now officially be longer than nights.
Today is the #spring #equilux which means we have 12 hours of daylight and days will now be longer than nights pic.twitter.com/LOIvE8tz3R
— Met Office (@metoffice) March 17, 2016