A heatwave sweeping across France is "classic" for the month of May, but "remarkable" for its earliness, according to Christelle Robert, a forecaster at Météo France, who notes that the 25°C threshold was reached on Monday in France. The anticyclonic conditions that protect the country from disturbances are, however, causing fears of a significant drying out of the soil. Robert believes the current trend is down to climate change. IMAGES AND SOUNDBITES