Restless Britons brushed aside warnings from police and scientists and poured out on the country’s beaches to cool off from the scorching temperatures, which climbed to highs of 82F (28C).
From Monday, groups of up to six people will be allowed to meet both in public spaces and in private gardens, where they can even enjoy barbecues.
But Boris Johnson’s preemptive announcement of the loosening last Thursday has already spurred a wave of revelry across the country.
Police chiefs have warned their officers face an uphill struggle to enforce the existing rules this weekend, but have attempted to stamp out mass flouting by threatening to impose fines.
The current lockdown allows the public to travel to beauty spots to sunbathe with members of their household, or to meet one person from another household at a two-metre distance.
Yet scenes at bustling seaside hotspots, especially along the south coast, showed large groups sprawling on the sand and pitching up tents from early this morning.
Compliance with the curbs frayed further on the 68th day of lockdown as three of the nation’s top scientists – all on the government’s Sage panel of experts steering the crisis response – voiced concerns that restrictions were being lifted ‘too early’.
Prof Peter Horby this morning lined up behind Sir Jeremy Farrar and Prof John Edmunds to break ranks and caution that measures were being relaxed when the infection rate was still not low enough.
Scenes at bustling seaside hotspots, especially along the south coast Bournemouth, showed large groups sprawling on the sand and pitching up tents from early this morning.
Crowds pour on to the beach at Durdle Door, near Lulworth, Dorset, today as temperatures soar and Britain braced for more lockdown easing.
Daily Mail