2017 could be Britain's hottest year EVER with temperatures hitting 55F on Christmas Day but gales, storms and weatherbombs are on the way

• Tropical air is set to make Christmas Day one of the hottest on record with highs of a balmy 15C tomorrow
• A balmy 15.6C is the warmest Christmas Day on record, set in Edinburgh in 1896 and Devon in 1920 
• This year is poised to finish as a hotter year than the 2003 and 2006 heatwave scorchers, Met Office said  
• Bookmakers Ladbrokes has slashed odds on the warmest Christmas Day ever from 10/1 to a tiny 3/1

2017 is verging on becoming Britain's hottest year ever – as tropical air makes Christmas Day hotter than the Mediterranean as it nudges the 15C (59F) record warmest December 25 ever.

This year is poised to finish as a hotter year than the 2003 and 2006 heatwave scorchers, Met Office records show.

That would leave 2017 behind only 2014 as the warmest year since records began 107 years ago in 1910.

This year's average UK temperature is set to pip the 9.73C in 2006 - which saw the hottest summer ever recorded - as well as the 9.50C in 2003, which saw Britain's 38.5C hottest day on record, and the 9.64C sizzler in 2011. 2014 saw 9.91C.

An average year is just 8.85C. The Met Office will finalise 2017's temperature in the New Year. 

2017 could be the hottest year ever recorded in Britain and tropical air is set make Christmas Day one of the warmest. The Angel of the North in Gateshead was pictured silhouetted against the sky 


This year is poised to finish as a hotter year than the 2003 and 2006 heatwave scorchers, Met Office records show. People gathered at Victoria Tower on Castle Hill, Kirklees, West Yorkshire, this morning and enjoyed stunning views

The Met Office forecast Christmas Day to see sunny spells in the South and highs pushing towards 15C – 9C above the UK's average late-December highs.

But the warm weather is not going to last, with four festive storms due to hit Britain from today to New Year's Eve – with a 70mph 'weather bomb' threatening the 'nightmare after Christmas' for travellers.

Temperatures will push the 15.6C warmest Christmas Day record, set in Edinburgh in 1896 and Devon in 1920.

Saturday saw a freak 15.1C at Kinlochewe, Wester Ross, northern Scotland.

On Christmas Day, all of England and Wales will be in double figures. 

The South and Midlands will be dry until mid-afternoon. But the North will see showers and turn colder with a risk of snow in the evening.

Bookmakers Ladbrokes has slashed odds on the warmest Christmas Day ever from 10/1 to 3/1.

Britain will be hotter than 12C Naples in southern Italy, on the Mediterranean.

Tropical air is arriving from 2,000 miles away, south of the Azores islands in the mid-Atlantic. 

Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill said: '14C can't be ruled out on Christmas Day, which is not far from the December 25 record.

'Tropical maritime air from around the Azores will bring mild air, with 10-12C for much of England and Wales.'

The Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze said: '14C or 15C in late December is remarkably mild.' 

This is the UK's three-day weather forecast. Christmas will have showers for many people but that should clear up as the week progresses


Temperatures will push the 15.6C warmest Christmas Day record, set in Edinburgh in 1896 and Devon in 1920. In Oakworth, West Yorkshire, fishing boats were pictured bathed in sunshine

On Christmas Day, all of England and Wales will be in double figures.  American Steam Train 'Santa Express' was pictured powering through Oakworth

All but three months so far this year were hotter than average.

Spring saw unusually dry southerly winds boosting Britain's temperatures. Highs hit 29C in northern England and Scotland in for the late May Bank Holiday weekend.

Heat from the continent delivered summer roasts. The 34.5C second hottest June day for 167 years was followed by the 28.2C hottest late August Bank Holiday since it began 52 years ago.

Surges of tropical heat in autumn delivered Indian Summer warmth. Mid-October sizzled at 23.5C.

The heat meant the mid-December chill was just a blip.

The Met Office says 2018 is expected to be a hot year. 

Mr Burkill said: 'The majority of months this year have been warmer than average.

'There were some warm conditions in spring and the first half of summer was particularly good.

'Autumn also also had a very warm period. But there were severe events also, including early named storms in September.'

Mr Gaze said: '2017 looks like bordering on the UK's warmest year on record.

Experts are predicting one pf the warmest Christmases on record. Stunning colours were captured in the morning sunrise on Christmas Eve at Victoria Tower on Castle Hill, Kirklees

'It's been a balmy year with consistently warm spells all the way through, not just in one season.

'There were some great conditions in spring, and summer had very hot conditions, especially in June.

'Autumn saw some Indian Summer weather and also warm tropical air being pumped north, which has returned for the Christmas to top off a warm year.'  

But the warm weather won't last.

Four festive storms will hit Britain from today to New Year's Eve – with a 70mph 'weather bomb' threatening the 'nightmare after Christmas' for travellers.

New Year's Eve and Hogmanay celebrations – cancelled in previous year due to storms - are at risk.

Millions face transport impacts. 

Storms Dylan and Eleanor threaten to be named as winds peak between Wednesday and New Year's Eve next Sunday.

A 'weather bomb' threatens, said both The Weather Outlook and Netweather.

A 'weather bomb' sees 'explosive cyclogenesis' as air pressure plunges by more than 24 milibars in 24 hours, whipping up wild winds.

The Met Office said a storm undergoing cyclogenesis was not uncommon at this time of year,