ANOTHER bizarre weather episode, and this one was the most freakish yet: a hot, dry and sunny spell that coincided with the weekend. Even more surprisingly, this baffling climatic phenomenon has failed to provoke a hosepipe ban.

Forecasters promise a quick return to the scattered showers of tradition. So it would be wrong to suggest that the last few days brought final proof of global warming.

For that we must wait a few weeks. Meteorologists will no doubt be monitoring the forthcoming Wimbledon fortnight. If it remains warm and dry throughout, they will have their clinching evidence.