The Met Office has issued a heatwave update, with the prospect of 30C heat returning looms. After a record-breaking end to May, June has started as a damp squib. However, a major change in the weather is expected as we approach the weekend, with the Met Office forecasting much warmer temperatures starting from June 13.
Dan Stroud, meteorologist at the Met Office, said: We are looking at temperatures climbing into the weekend, particularly on Saturday and Sunday, so feeling much warmer than recent days, with temperatures quite widely above average, especially across the south come Saturday, and even more so on Sunday.
He added: How high the temperatures get is still open to a fair amount of debate. There is a growing signal that temperatures will be heading comfortably into the high 20s, perhaps breaking 30 degrees again. There is definitely a chance of temperatures scraping into the above 30 degrees on Sunday, and then more so on Monday.
We keep close tabs on it because there is always the potential for hitting heatwave criteria again, he continued. End of this week, high pressure starts to build from the south, with clearing skies and rising temperatures over the continent. It is just a perfect recipe for temperatures to actually start climbing.
Mr Stroud said: Thursday is likely the wettest day of the week, with an organised band of rain moving across us. But there is light at the end of the tunnel. A deluge of rain is forecast to cover the UK on Thursday before conditions begin to improve from Friday. But from Saturday, temperatures are expected to soar, potentially reaching highs of 29C or even higher in some areas, marking a prolonged spell of above-average warmth. High pressure will bring widely settled conditions until Tuesday next week, though temperatures may not remain as high beyond the weekend.
