It's official - Bournemouth residents and visitors to the area have enjoyed the warmest start to November since records began in 1879.

Friday's "freakish" 18.9C (66F) was the hottest November day ever recorded, breaking the previous high of 17.9C which was set just one day before. The temperatures broke the 17.5C milestone set 29 years earlier.

Bournemouth meteorologist Charles Thomas said the pleasant introduction to the month was more typical of the start and end of summer.

"The temperature on Friday was astonishing, and a little like June or September," said Mr Thomas.

The mild temperatures were caused by something called the Föhn effect, where warmer weather originating from the mid-Atlantic, and similar to the climate in the Azores, drifts north before settling.

The classic Föhn effect is experienced in the Alps and the alpine region and is a result of air cooling as it rises. However, just as air cools when it rises, it also warms at the same rate when it descends.

"The sun is relatively low in the sky now so it doesn't contribute to increased temperatures too much," Mr Thomas added. "It is more to do with the wind."

But Mr Thomas, whose figures were taken from daily readings in King's Park, said the weather was "too good to last".

"This northern flow will get cut off, bringing much cooler air," the 56-year-old said.

"I am expecting things to return to normal pretty quickly, with temperatures of about 12C.

"I am not surprised that the record has been broken, but I am surprised by the scale by which it has been broken.

"We have come close to breaking the record a few times before, but to do it twice in two days is quite astonishing."

Mr Thomas did not rule out the chance of similar warm spells in December.