The Met Office has warned that thunderstorms and heavy showers are expected across parts of the UK this bank holiday weekend, despite some areas basking in temperatures as high as 23°C.
Forecasters said all regions will see some dry spells, with the sunniest and driest conditions expected on Saturday. However, the improvement comes after flooding hit parts of northern England earlier this week, with Carlisle in Cumbria recording 88mm of rain in 48 hours – well above the May average of 55mm for the entire month.
Met Office meteorologist Amy Bokota said low pressure will ease on Friday, bringing an improved picture overall. “Things will improve as we head into Saturday morning. Wind will ease and it will be a pretty good day across the board,” she said. “Scotland will see a few showers but the bulk of the UK will see brighter spells. The best will be 22-23°C across the south of England and London.”
Saturday evening is expected to bring showers to southern Wales, the South West and Cornwall, pushing northwards on Sunday. Sunday will see more cloudy conditions and outbreaks of rain, with thunderstorms possible in north-west England and southern parts of Wales.
Ms Bokota added: “It will stay unsettled through bank holiday Monday. There will be further showers in parts of Scotland, the north east of England and Northern Ireland. The best weather will be in the very far south west of the UK and southern England. Elsewhere will see heavy showers and isolated thunderstorms.”
She noted that while rain is expected, it will move quickly and not be as persistent as the heavy rain seen earlier in the week, meaning there are no major flood warnings in place.
