Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
Business
Martin Farrer

‘Earth sends a warning’: how the papers covered the UK’s scorching heat

United Kingdom Sun Britain Penny Mordaunt Buckingham Palace
How some of Tuesday’s papers covered the heatwave.
How some of Tuesday’s papers covered the heatwave. Composite: The Sun / The Daily Telegraph / The Daily Mail / i paper / The Mirror

A picture of a Queen’s Guard sentry being given a sip of water outside Buckingham Palace is the defining image on Tuesday’s front pages, as the heatwave put the climate crisis in fresh focus.

All but a couple of the front pages feature the picture of the guardsman in his bearskin hat taking much-needed relief from the heat which on Monday topped 37.4 degrees in west London and a nationwide high of 38.1C in Santon Downham in Suffolk.

The prospect of an even hotter day on Tuesday provides a flurry of warnings on the front pages.

“Record highs, travel chaos, schools close ... and it’s going to get hotter”, says the Telegraph with a large image of the sentry from the Irish Guards on the front. A second story on the front carries comments from Prince Charles’ that the record-breaking heat had proved him right on the climate change “emergency”.

A Met Office heatmap of Britain makes for a striking front page in the i along with the headline “Earth sends a warning”.

The Sun has a closeup image of a possibly different Irish guardsman visibly sweating under the famous headwear. “Britain is melting”, says the main headline, with subheads reading “Record 41C ‘to hit today’” and “Runways KO’d by sun”.

The Guardian has a composite of different images from around the country but goes with a more politically focused headline: “Johnson accused of ‘checking out’ as Britain swelters in searing heat”.

The Mirror’s headline is “Record baker” over a picture of sunbathers in sunny North Tyneside and the subhead “Hottest day today with more to come”.

The Times leads with “Tory race thrown wide open” after the latest leadership ballot saw Liz Truss close the gap on Penny Mordaunt. It also has the weather story with the headline “Crazy heat stops trains and melts runways”.

The Mail also leads with the Tory race, claiming “Mordaunt’s No10 bid hits buffers”. At the top of the page it carries the picture of the guardsman with the headline “Sunny day snowflake Britain had a meltdown”, pointing to inside coverage that appears to lean towards the sceptical variety.

It’s the same in the Express where the headline has a cunning reference to the weather: “Can Truss turn up heat to battle Rishi in run-off?”

The Metro warns the country to “Get ready for… hottest day ever” with forecasts of 41C in some parts on Tuesday.

The Financial Times uses the guardsman for its picture story on the front and the headline “Drop guard: Britain braced for more heat”. The main story is about the Cambridge-based tech firm Arm: “Arm’s London listing plan on hold after Johnson’s fall sparks turmoil”.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
16 Years Later, ‘Battlestar’ Showrunner Finally Addresses the Show's Biggest Question
What is Starbuck? Ronald D. Moore and Katee Sackhoff just unpacked the biggest 'Battlestar Galactica' mystery.
Inverse
Inverse
Dressing like a witch is in fashion – finally I am ahead of the curve
Like other middle-aged women, my wardrobe is predominantly made up of black, loosely fitting clothing, often worn backwards. I’m glad to see us represented in the witchcore trend.
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Are you suffering from 'food noise'? Michael Mosley's son has written a book about it
Social media is alight with people who are sharing their experience of constant internal chatter about food. This so-called ‘food noise’ can be deafening — so here’s how to cope
Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Tim Burton 'relates' to dogs
Tim Burton told Helena Bonham Carter he "was a dog" and has always "related" to his canine companions.
BANG Premier
BANG Premier
Quick Facts About Nicole Brydon Bloom and Justin Theroux: How They Met, Careers, Their Engagement, and Wedding
Theroux, 53, and Bloom, 30, who got engaged in 2024, reportedly tied the knot in an intimate beach ceremony in Tulum, Mexico.
International Business Times UK
International Business Times UK
Many young people find safety in the soothing world of ASMR videos – imagine if we could give them that in the real world
ASMR videos can mimic the feeling of physical touch, which a study has found is popular with young consumers. But how many intimate gestures of love, care and connection are they missing out on, asks Emma Beddington
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.
Download on the AppStore Get it on Google Play