Gravesend loses its title as Britain's hottest spot

The distinction held by Gravesend, in Kent, of being the hottest place in Britain on record has lasted barely until the end of the summer.

Meteorologists armed with the latest data said yesterday that the highest temperature during the August heatwave had been in the same county, but nearly 40 miles east at Brogdale, near Faversham.

On August 10 the temperature there peaked at 38.5C (101.3F) compared with 38.1C (100.6F) in Gravesend on the same day.

A Meteorological Office spokeswoman said Gravesend had been only a provisional high and would now have to be deleted from the record books.

She added: "Gravesend is a real time observation station so we get their results every day, hence we could announce it was the hottest place. In Faversham, the results come in every month.

"We had to go and verify the information at Faversham to check the equipment was running correctly. That weather station is not run by the Met Office but by a volunteer."

The Met Office also said that this September was the sunniest on record, with an average of six hours a day, and the driest since 1997.