You may want to dig out your beach towels next week as Norfolk is set to bask in unusually warm temperatures with the county being hotter than parts of the Mediterranean.

Thermometers could reach highs of 16C on Monday with Great Yarmouth and the east of the county expected to see the best of the temperatures. This is warmer than the Spanish capital where temperatures are expected to peak at 14C.

These highs are well above average for this time of year with forecasters usually expecting 7C to be the day time peak but Adam Dury, from Norwich-based forecaster Weatherquest, said the anomaly is due to warm air coming up from north Africa.

'We have a front coming up from near the Equator which is bringing warm air from north Africa and although this is being cooled down slightly by the sea, it is a lot warmer than usual,' he said.

The warmer weather is expected to last until the middle of the weak before cooler temperatures take hold with ground frost forecasted for Thursday morning.

The spell follows weeks of freezing temperatures with most of the county seeing a covering of snow.