Britain has officially had its hottest day on record.

Weather agency the Met Office says the temperature reached 38.7 C (101.7 F) at Cambridge University Botanic Garden in eastern England during last week�s heat wave.

The temperature was recorded Thursday and confirmed Monday after �quality control and analysis� by the Met Office.

The previous U.K. record was 38.5 C (101.3 F), set in August 2003.

Temperature records fell across Europe last week as a suffocating heat wave swept up from the Sahara.

Met office climate scientist Mark McCarthy said climate change was making extreme temperatures more common.

He said �climate change has increased the likelihood and severity of heatwave episodes across Europe, which will have also increased the risks of a 40 Celsius temperature event in the U.K.�

(AP)