Cornwall musicians struggled through UK's hottest summer

Musicians say high temperatures over the summer left them struggling during performances, with some singers saying they felt close to fainting at gigs.

Summer 2026 was the UK's hottest on record, according to provisional data from the Met Office. Americana cousin duo Chloe Payne, 29, and Amie Parsons, 32, from Cornwall band True Foxes said it was the first year they needed cooling fans on the stage.

"There's been a couple of shows where we both felt like we were going to faint mid show," Payne said.

Another musician, Rhys Hurd, said the heat led to problems with his equipment, including seven guitar strings snapping, while he also needed to reapply sun cream during outdoor performances.

Parsons said the True Foxes duo wore hats and glasses and were covered in sun cream in a bid to beat the heat during festivals and outdoor performances.

"I think we played in Newquay on the beach and we were melting, absolutely melting in the direct sun," she said.

"It has been, yeah, unbelievably warm this summer, the hottest one we've ever performed in."

"It's tricky, because… when you get really hot when you're singing, you feel like you're gonna faint," Payne added.

" I think we had like four water bottles lined up on stage on one of the shows, like four each, just going through them all."

Solo Cornish artist Hurd, who also plays in function band The Crowd Pleasers, said it had been his busiest summer "by a long shot in terms of gigs".

"I think between the end of May to the end of September, it's like hit 34, 35 gigs in a single summer," he said.

"So I, I do think with the summer being so hot, I think more venues have been putting on more acts locally around Cornwall, which is good."

But Hurd said he needed to drink water and keep reapplying sun cream in order to avoid dehydration and keep energy levels up.

He said the heat had also affected equipment, including instruments.

"It's a real niche thing for a guitar player, but I have broken probably like six or seven strings," he said.

"The heat has kind of had a big impact on some equipment that you wouldn't necessarily think it would."

Bailey Tomkinson from Bailey Tomkinson and The Locals , said loading band equipment on and off a stage was a "workout" in the heat.

"One thing we started doing whenever we could was going for sea swims … it's somehow become a bit of a post-show ritual now," she said. "Fully embracing our Cornish upbringing!"

Solo artist Luke McCauley also said performing live was "tricky in the heat", adding long journeys required even more energy.

He said musicians were even hotter due to the clothes they traditionally wore for some performances.

"Wearing some of the clothes you wear at weddings and stuff, shirts and stuff, shirts and ties, [is] not good in the heat. It makes it way more sweaty than it needs to be," he said.

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