Following collapses of the neighbouring Larsen A and B ice shelves, Larsen C has become a focus of increased attention. Determining how the prevailing meteorological conditions influence the surface melt regime is of paramount significance for understanding the dominant processes causing melt and ultimately for predicting its future. A new, high-resolution (4 km grid spacing) Met Office Unified Model (MetUM) hindcast of atmospheric conditions and surface melt processes over the central Antarctic Peninsula during the period 1998-2017 is developed for this purpose. The hindcast is capable of reliably simulating observed near-surface meteorology and surface melt conditions over Larsen C. In contrast with previous model simulations, the MetUM captures the observed east-west gradient in surface melting associated with foehn winds, as well as the inter-annual variability in melt shown in previous observational studies. The hindcast is applied to two case studies – the months preceding the collapse of the Larsen B ice shelf in March 2002 and the high-foehn, high-melt period of March-May 2016 - to test its ability to reproduce the atmospheric effects that contributed to considerable melting during those periods. The results suggest that the MetUM hindcast is a reliable tool with which to explore the dominant causes of surface melting on Larsen C.