Wet bank holiday Monday for most areas ends dry spring

Wet weekend weather is expected to continue into the Monday bank holiday, ending a record-breaking dry spring.

While the UK will not see “a washout for everybody”, meteorologist Becky Mitchell said, heavy rain is expected by the evening.

England had its driest start to spring in March and April since 1956, with half the expected rainfall in April and only a quarter of the long-term average in March, Met Office figures show.

According to the forecaster, until Friday night, Leuchars in Fife went 34 days without rain, while people in Bradford, West Yorkshire, did not see rain for 31 days.

Meteorologist Becky Mitchell said: “The bank holiday Monday is pretty dry to start with, but we will see increasingly wet weather moving in from the west later in the day.

“As we head through into the early evening we’re seeing heavy rain pushing into western areas, particularly Northern Ireland.

“The south of Scotland, north west England and part of Wales will see rather heavy rain from around 3pm.

“So it’s not a washout for everybody, but there’s some heavy rain coming in during the afternoon to western areas.

“Many places will see around 10-20mm and likely up to 40mm across Wales and north west England.

“It will be quite windy in some areas tomorrow.

“Stronger winds will develop particularly across the north and south west of England and Wales, these areas could see in the region of 40-50mph at times.

“So just be aware if anyone’s out camping or doing any outdoor activities in the later part of the afternoon it will turn increasingly windy in these areas.”

Regions in southern England are expected to reach 17C on Monday, but Scottish temperatures will remain in the low teens.

“This week we could see temperatures push to the low 20s in the south, and at the end of the week we can see drier and more settled weather develop in southern England and Wales,” Ms Mitchell said.

“Temperatures are average for this time of year, we’re looking at mid to high teens across the UK.

“When you add on a brisk breeze it will feel chilly in some sports.”

There are currently no weather warnings in place but strong winds could disrupt outdoor activity plans over the bank holiday Monday, forecasters warn.