Temperatures will peak

I rarely go to London, but of course one of those rare visits just happened to be scheduled for the hottest day of the year so far. Getting there wasn’t too bad and I was early enough to avoid the worst of the Bakerloo line. Coming home after lunch was hellish. Marylebone was stinking hot but nothing compared to the stupid little Chiltern Railways train with solid unopenable windows, no ventilation, never mind air con. Very soon, with the sun blazing in through the windows, the temperatures rose to over 40, then even higher. The passengers were dripping with sweat, my African colleague struggling to peel herself off the seat and the couple from Hong Kong next to us used the intercom to beg the driver to get some ventilation going. One woman had to be held up she was so dizzy as someone said the temperature was now 42 and the train of course had its speed reduced so the journey took 20 minutes longer than usual. I was so happy when I stepped off and the 36 degree heat of Oxford was beautifully cool in comparison. I cycled home to nab a Solero from the freezer before peeling off my sodden clothes. Incredibly, the boys played a football match after work, swigging bottles of ORS to keep them going.