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The Orkney town where the weather is just right

BBC Patty eats ice creamBBC
Patty from Arkansas was among those enjoying the balmy conditions in Orkney

While temperatures soar to record breaking levels across many parts of the UK - there are some corners escaping the heatwave - including Orkney.

Look up "balmy" in the dictionary, and it'll say something like "mild or temperate". Just at the moment, it might as well go on to say "see Orkney", with top temperatures of about 20C expected on Tuesday.

Which is pretty good. But nothing like the 34C predicted in the Scottish borders. Or the 40.2C recorded at Heathrow in London earlier.

Fair to say some people here feel the Orkney islands are missing out. One woman told me she's feeling chilly. "I've still got a vest on", she giggled.

But others are revelling in the conditions.

wedding party
George and Alison Reid chose a nice (but not too hot) day to get married in Kirkwall

New bride Alison Reid has just married George at the Kirkwall and St Ola Town Hall.

As friends showered them with confetti, she tells me she owns an ice cream shop, and she's hoping it'll be doing a roaring trade while she's otherwise engaged.

Patty from Arkansas was tucking into an Orkney ice cream, and musing on temperatures back at home that were already over 37C before she left the USA to come to Scotland.

And a group of visitors from Vienna had sought out a shady table outside Kirkwall's "Daily Scoop", to plan their four days in Orkney and enjoy a cold drink. They said they were loving the weather - so long as it doesn't rain.

Party from Vienna
Susanna, Michaela and Susanna from Austria said the conditions were good - with the rain holding off
Jodie(mum), Reagan (left) and Yara enjoying a day at Scapa Beach
Jodie(mum), Reagan (left) and Yara enjoying a day at Scapa Beach, just outside the centre of Kirkwall

But why aren't the Northern Isles getting the record breaking temperatures that are hitting so much of the rest of mainland England and Scotland - collectively known in Orkney as "south"?

BBC Scotland weather presenter Joy Dunlop told BBC Radio Orkney that "exceptionally hot air from North Africa and the Sahara has been lingering, and over the last few days a southerly air flow has been drawing this very hot air northwards throughout the UK.

"Neither Orkney nor Shetland has experienced these exceptionally high temperatures, due to this very hot air not quite making its way far north enough."

She added: "Your weather is being steered by a low pressure system to the north west, with a series of weather fronts moving in bringing more in the way of unsettled conditions, rain and a fresher air flow."

So it looks like Orkney will continue to escape the heatwave's grip for now.