Piles of crisp, fallen leaves would normally be a sign that autumn is approaching. But in Wisley, they are falling at the height of summer, alongside dried-up ponds and lawns scorched yellow.
The Surrey village – home to one of England’s most popular public gardens – has gone a record-breaking 56 consecutive days without rainfall, according to the Met Office.
Wisley’s drought streak, which surpasses the 36 consecutive days it went without rain during the 1976 heatwave, is the longest of any area in the UK this year.
Economy grows by 0.4% – what you need to know
The UK economy grew by 0.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2026, new data has shown.
What is driving the growth
The growth comes after a first quarter in which the economy expanded by 0.6 per cent and has been boosted by the summer sun and sports events, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Computer programming, advertising and the pharmaceutical industry were areas of strength, the ONS said, but this was offset by falls in power generation and sewerage.
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Housing nightmares
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Growth likely to slow
The economy is now 1.2% bigger than a year ago, but economists warn growth is likely to slow in the second half of the year.
Speaking to the , Fergus Jimenez-England, associate economist at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research said: “Both inflation and unemployment are set to rise in the coming months while business sentiment remains fragile and could dampen further with ongoing energy price volatility.”
I’m a pension expert with a £300,000 pot – here are my golden rules for saving
Kirsty Ross has been working in the pensions industry for 15 years but says experts have the same fears and anxieties as everyone else.
How ‘black hole stars’ could explain mystery of the early universe
Strange red spots in images from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) may be a newly discovered type of object called a “black hole star” that is larger than our entire solar system.
Supermassive blackholes
Astronomers have said the objects may help to explain how supermassive blackholes formed so early in the history of the universe.
They lie at the hearts of galaxies and play a key role in determining their growth and evolution.
Solving a puzzle for cosmologists
Supermassive blackholes appear to have formed very soon after the birth of the universe, puzzling cosmologists over how they had time to grow so much during the universe’s infancy.
However, the red dot found by the JWST, which is believed to have formed 660 million years after the Big Bang, may be an infant black hole surrounded by a “cloak of gas” that feeds it as it grows, according to analysis published in the journal .
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The organ in your chest that could be key to living longer
The thymus was once thought to be nearly useless in adults – now scientists think it could be vital for our health.
Nurses ‘collapsing on shift’ due to heatwave – what we know
Nurses are collapsing during shifts amid “inhumane and impossible” conditions caused by extreme heat, their union has warned.
Union warns of unsafe conditions
The Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has become the latest union to warn of unsafe working conditions for its members as the number of days over 30°C is already at a new record of 35 this summer.
The union has said some staff have collapsed, while others were left dizzy, nauseous or at risk of fainting while dripping with sweat “from head to toe”.
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What is being done about it?
The NHS has been ordered by health secretary Yvette Cooper to prepare for the effects of heatwaves each year in the same way that it prepares for winter.
Earlier this year, the Climate Change Committee of MPs said that the government should ensure cooling measures are installed in all hospitals and care homes by 2035.
Nurses are being ‘failed’
When nursing staff are collapsing, feeling dizzy, sick or even being admitted to the very hospitals they work in because their workplaces cannot handle the heat, it shows just how badly they are being failed.
RCN chief executive and general secretary Professor Nicola Ranger
Stunning solar eclipse dazzles Europe – in pictures
From Aberdeen to Penzance, from Aberystwyth to Hull, skywatchers were out in force yesterday to see the best solar eclipse in a generation.
In pictures
The spectacle continues
A once-in-a-lifetime experience for many
The event sparked huge interest for people across the UK as the Moon covered more than 90 per cent of the Sun.
It was the first time for many, with the last full eclipse occurring in August 1999. However, eclipse enthusiasts will have to wait until 23 September 2090 for the next one.
A scramble for eclipse glasses
Looking directly at the eclipse with the naked eye, or even sunglasses, can cause permanent damage, so a scramble for eclipse glasses ensued around the country.
Huge queues formed at shops which still had stock left, while many had already sold out and were forced to turn away customers.
Temperatures to hit 38°C today as amber warning expanded
Sweltering temperatures of up to 38°C are set to hit the UK today.
The Met Office has today issued an updated amber extreme heat warning for areas across the UK lasting from 9:00 to 23:00.
The relentless heat means that this summer is likely to be the hottest on record.
A dangerous period of heat
The sweltering temperatures forecast today mark the peak of the UK’s latest heatwave.
Tropical nights, where temperatures fail to drop below 20°C, are also expected as humid air spreads into western areas, which can place additional stress on the body.
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An extraordinarily dry period
The lack of rain has piled pressure on farming, freight shipping and energy production, after the UK saw its driest July in 190 years.
Up to 27 million people find themselves under water-use restrictions and 1,017 wildfires have devastated vegetation across England and Wales so far this year, according to the National Fire Chiefs Council.
Temperature records likely to be beaten
More long-standing temperature records are likely to be broken over the coming days.
- Wednesday became the first day in August to reach 35°C or more, making it the 4th consecutive month to reach this temperature.
- If temperatures reach 36°C or higher, 2026 will become the first year to record four separate days at or above that threshold.
- If temperatures reach 38°C today, there is a chance that the record for the hottest August day, which currently stands at 38.5°C, could be broken.
- Provided August temperatures remain average or above for the month, this summer will replace 2025 as the warmest on record.
The heatwave in pictures
Firefighters call for water bomb aircraft to tackle wildfires
Firefighters have called for “wildfire-fighting aircraft” to help combat spate of blazes as Britain braces for another heatwave, with temperatures set to rise above 35°C, possibly reaching 38°C.
The village is home to RHS Garden Wisley – which welcomes more than one million visits each year and is the charity’s flagship garden.
But visitors this week spoke of their concerns over how the prolonged dry and hot conditions are impacting the formerly green village.
“You don’t have green grass anywhere,” said Pete, who only wanted to give his first name.
Another visitor said they had noticed the pond at the Butterfly Lovers Pavilion had “dried up”.
Leigh Hunt, principal horticulturalist at RHS Garden Wisley, told The i Paper that each year “brings a lot of different challenges in the garden, and it’s definitely kept us on our toes”.
Hydrangeas uprooted for new home
Staff at the garden have been adapting by starting work at 4.30am to care for the plants, and not watering certain collections such as arboretums.
RHS director of gardens and horticulture, Tim Upson, said while the wider treescape at Wisley remains green and key areas of the garden continue to look good, some parts have been affected by the prolonged summer heat.
“Some trees, such as the common birch, betula pendula, around the periphery of the garden are yellowing with early leaf drop,” he said.
The RHS is reviewing how and where to allocate water among its five gardens as part of emergency plans to future-proof for droughts.
Projects this year include increasing water storage in tanks and lakes and investing in rain garden installations.
“It’s about using it [water] very carefully and wisely, either on the plants that need it most or in some of the very high-profile areas that people really enjoy, so that Wisley remains to be a beautiful place,” Hunt added.
Taking cuttings of RHS Wisley’s beloved hydrangea collection and finding a new home for them at RHS Garden Bridgewater, in Greater Manchester or RHS Garden Rosemoor in Devon, are also being considered.
But while Wisley’s dry spell is approaching the UK’s longest on record – 73 days, observed at Mile End in London in 1893 – forecasts suggest the area could see light rain sometime next week.
Exotic flowers flourish
Either way, some more exotic plants that are used to dry conditions are flourishing.
Upson said: “Star flowering plants at the moment include the crape myrtles, Persian silk trees and hibiscus, all examples of significant plantings made in the last 10 years of plants able to perform in drought and heat.”
Meanwhile, Hunt added that the “traditional long borders are looking stunning at the moment with all the sunlight and the heat have actually really suited the flowers down there, the water goes to those because we know that those are things that people love to see”.
Residential gardens are also struggling amid the prolonged dry weather and Surrey’s hosepipe ban.
A man who was out with his dog on nearby Ripley Green, who did not want to be named, said: “I can’t water all the shrubs that I’ve paid several hundred pounds for. I’ve lost about four or five.”
Frances Porter, resident of Ockham which shares a large common with Wisley, is also struggling to keep plants in her garden alive.
The Ockham and Hatchford Residents Association chair added: “I did have some lilies, but they came and flowered, and then they sort of died in about a week. They normally last like a month and a half or something like that.”
In Ripley, the neighbouring village, Jeff Richardson, owner of Richardsons florist, has noticed customers are coming in earlier in the day to avoid the heat.
Richardson is keeping more flowers in the shop’s cold room, a climate-controlled space that keeps cut flowers fresher for longer.
“We are becoming more European in terms of our climate and perhaps we’ll be changing, it might affect our pattern of opening,” he said. “It might be something whereby we shut for the middle part of the day.”
Wildfire fears
In Wisley Common, the Farm Pond has all but dried up.
Porter, who regularly walks across the common with her dogs, is concerned about the impact on local wildlife.
She said: “The pond is virtually nothing left. I think by the end of the weekend, there will be no water there.”
The area, managed by the Surrey Wildlife Trust, typically relies on conservation grazing herds of sheep and cattle to prevent the overgrowth of scrub.
But the extended drought makes providing water and wider welfare for these animals a substantial challenge, James Herd, director of reserves management at Surrey Wildlife Trust, said.
Another concern is wildfires, which he said can have a “devastating effect on the complex web of flora and fauna that exists in these rare habitats”.
“Without the checks provided by rainfall, these fires can spread rapidly over larger areas, burn for longer and have devastating effects also on rare wildlife including adders, and lizards, nightjars and dartford warblers, not to mention hundreds of plant and invertebrate species.”