Britain is set to roast this week with temperatures soaring to 27C. The warmth is finally returning after days of showers and chilly weather left it feeling more like winter than spring.
Although the chill is set to remain for a few days, temperatures are set to climb throughout the week. And it could hit 27C by the end of the week in the South and 25C in Manchester in time for the bank holiday weekend.
It could mean the country sees the hottest day of the year after 26.6C was recorded last month. The Met Office said that tomorrow (May 19) and Wednesday will be “unsettled at first with showers or longer spells of rain.”
It added: “Turning drier from Thursday for many and starting to become warmer.” Today (May 18) will see a mixed bag of sunshine and showers for many with downpours moving into Northern Ireland, Wales and southwest England by the evening.
After returning to around average mid to high teen temperatures, it will jump into the low 20s for much of the UK from Wednesday. Sky News weather presenter Jo Wheeler said: “What we’re seeing at the moment is a classic battle between lingering cold air and the arrival of much warmer air from the south.”
She added: “Over the next few days we’ll see a shift to a milder westerly flow before high pressure sets up in the east with southerly winds pulling in warm air from the near continent. Disregarding the accurate figures, it’s going to be, and feel, much warmer than it has done recently. A total plot twist in the wardrobe!”
It comes after northerly winds across the nation saw the mercury plunge to 4-7C below average temperatures last week. Parts of the country were also battered by showers, thunderstorms and hail stones.
Craig Snell, forecaster at the Met Office, said: “The first half of this week is still going to be changeable, if not unsettled, across parts of the UK. Temperatures at the start of the week still a little subdued for the time of the year, as we head towards the weekend we are expecting to see a change.
“The best of the sunshine across the bank holiday weekend will probably be across England and Wales. Temperatures still above normal, potentially very warm again, but it’s a bit too far in the future to get maximums. Indications are at the moment that the bank holiday looks a lot better than what we’ve had over the last week or so.”
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