Today was Northern Ireland’s hottest day of the year so far… but the record might not last long.

Met Office forecasters are predicting that tomorrow could be even hotter still – though it looks likely we’ll see more clouds and lower temperatures over the weekend.

According to Met Office forecaster Dan Stroud, the hottest places to be in the Province on Thursday were:

Castlederg, where the temperature reached 25.7C at 3.12pm;

placeholder image — Mitchell Smith pictured after proposing to Rhiannon Hutt at Belfast Castle, enjoying the sunshine outside. Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press

Derrylin in Co Fermanagh, where the temperature hit 25.6C at 2.12pm;

And Armagh, where the temperature rose to 24.9C at 3.22pm.

That is far higher than the previous day’s top temperature of 21.2C at Derrylin, but is still a long way short of the record for the month of June which stands at 30.8C, recorded on June 30, 1976 at Knockarevan in Co Fermanagh.

The high of 25.7C is also well below Thursday’s top temperature for the whole of the UK, which according to the BBC was 32.2C in Kew, London.

Mr Stroud stressed that Thursday’s temperature figures are provisional, until they get confirmed tomorrow.

As to what the days ahead have in store, he told the News Letter: “There’s substantial changes as we move through the next few days.

"Friday will be very bright and sunny, with maybe a bit more cloud. In terms of temperatures, we should see ones slightly higher than today: 26C or 27C are possible in some spots.

"Then as we move into the weekend, we’re starting to see cloud spill in from the west, with a chance of showers on Saturday afternoon.

"At the moment we’re giving a broad brush picture, but probably it’s eastern counties, late in the day, with an increased risk of thundery showers late on Saturday into Sunday, and you’re looking at low-to-mid 20s [in temperature].

"Sunday, we’re looking at high teens, low 20s, with the potential for showers moving in from the west. It’s going to feel a lot fresher.”

After that? “The key point is low pressure becoming more of a feature towards the end of June with temperatures more close to average – around 17C to 18C.”