Temperatures will cool for parts of the UK this weekend, with many areas waking up to a chilly start on Saturday. After days of hot and humid weather, the Met Office says England and Wales are headed for their driest July since records began. Saturday will bring a cooler start for many, along with plenty of sunny spells through the morning. Maximum temperatures of 25-26C are predicted, which forecasters say will still feel warm but not as hot as recent days.
The Met Office said on Friday that England and Wales are on course for the driest July since records began, describing the month as featuring an “exceptional combination of extreme heat, abundant sunshine and an almost complete absence of rainfall”.
Provisional statistics show only 5.6mm of rain fell in England in July, less than half the previous record of 13.4mm set in 1911. Wales is also set for its driest July, with 7.9mm – almost a third of the previous record of 22.6mm, also set in 1911. Northern Ireland is on track for its eighth driest July, and the UK as a whole is on course for its third driest. Scotland has received 72% of its average rainfall and is not currently in the top 10 driest Julys.
Weekend forecast
On Saturday, there will be showery rain in the north, particularly Scotland, but it will be mostly dry elsewhere, according to Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill. In the Friday evening weather forecast, Burkill said: “Many places, especially in the south, are crying out for some much-needed rain. Whilst there’s a bit of a rain on the horizon for next week, there’s not much to come this weekend.”
Drought and wildfire
Aerial pictures taken on Friday show the parched London landscape after weeks of hot, dry weather. Half of England and the whole of Wales is officially in drought as successive heatwaves put pressure on water resources.
Firefighters have been tackling a blaze at Dunwich Heath, near Leiston, Suffolk, since 5.30pm on Wednesday. On Friday evening, Suffolk County Council said crews remained at the scene and “good progress is continuing”. The wildfire is a few miles from nuclear power station Sizewell B and the construction site for new power station Sizewell C.
