UK weather: Brits facing glorious 22C blast on sunny Friday ahead of thunderstorm weekend

Some Brits can look forward to 22C today in some places while others can expect thunderstorms rumbling over their homes which may go into the weekend in some areas

Brits are set to bake in glorious 22C conditions in some places today - while others tremble during thunderstorms washing out the rest of the day.

The Met Office says the mercury will nudge 22C around London as the sunny weather experienced by many continues. But although many will be enjoying the conditions, others in the south and in Wales have been warned to expect thunderstorms rumbling overhead.

Yellow warnings are in places for millions of Brits as the weekend gets off to a soggy start. The Met Office’s forecast reads: “Cloud burning back to eastern coasts, with sunny spells developing.

“Heavy showers and thunderstorms will break out across southern England and Wales in the afternoon. Feeling warm for many.”

The yellow warning for thunderstorms is in place tomorrow from noon until 8pm. Another yellow warning is in place for Saturday covering a huge part of the south of the country from 1am until midnight. The warning reads: “Whilst some places will remain dry, where thundery showers do occur, they will bring frequent lightning, gusty winds, potentially some large hail, as well as brief spells of heavy rain.

"As much as 15-25 mm of rain fall may fall within an hour, with a very small chance of 30-40 mm falling in 3 hours; the latter most likely across southwest England. Showers will tend to ease and fade during Friday evening.”

Met Office Chief Meteorologist, Neil Armstrong, said: “Thundery downpours are expected to develop in places across the south on Friday afternoon bringing frequent lightning, gusty winds, hail, and spells of heavy rain.

The risk of thunderstorms persists into Saturday with potentially longer spells of heavy rain for some along with a continued risk of hail and lightning accompanying the most intense storms, particularly in parts of the Midlands, southern England and east Wales during Saturday afternoon and evening.

“The warnings cover the areas of the country most at risk of seeing thunderstorms but not everyone within a warning area will experience a thunderstorm. For much of the time it will remain dry.

“We are also expecting these showers to merge into longer spells of heavy rain on Sunday and Monday across some southern and central parts, and once the full details become clearer, we may well issue further severe weather warnings so keep up to date with the latest forecast for your area.”

Regions and local authorities affected by Friday’s warning

East Midlands

• Northamptonshire

East of England

• Bedford
• Central Bedfordshire
• Hertfordshire
• Luton

London & South East England

• Bracknell Forest
• Buckinghamshire
• Greater London
• Hampshire
• Isle of Wight
• Milton Keynes
• Oxfordshire
• Portsmouth
• Reading
• Slough
• Southampton
• Surrey
• West Berkshire
• West Sussex
• Windsor and Maidenhead
• Wokingham

South West England

• Bath and North East Somerset
• Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole
• Bristol
• Cornwall
• Devon
• Dorset
• Gloucestershire
• North Somerset
• Plymouth
• Somerset
• South Gloucestershire
• Swindon
• Torbay
• Wiltshire

Wales

• Blaenau Gwent
• Bridgend
• Caerphilly
• Cardiff
• Carmarthenshire
• Ceredigion
• Merthyr Tydfil
• Monmouthshire
• Neath Port Talbot
• Newport
• Pembrokeshire
• Powys
• Rhondda Cynon Taf
• Swansea
• Torfaen
• Vale of Glamorgan

West Midlands

• Herefordshire
• Shropshire
• Staffordshire
• Warwickshire
• West Midlands Conurbation
• Worcestershire