Hottest day of the year - but will it last?
The heat is on as the hottest day of the year so far is on the horizon - but the balmy temperature will not be widespread and will be short-lived.
The mercury is set to hit 26C (78.8F) in the south east tomorrow (Friday), beating this year's record high of 25.6C (78.08F) in Faversham, Kent, on April 15. Words: PA.
But the warm temperatures will come after thunderstorms and heavy showers are expected to hit, prompting the Met Office to put out yellow weather warnings for rain in London and south-east England, the East of England, East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber.
The weekend is expected too see highs of about 21C (69.8F), dashing hopes of a heatwave.
Met Office forecaster Daniel Panton-King said once the showers clear there will be "plenty of sunshine".
The majority of England and Wales will have a "nice, fine day" on Saturday but northern England and up into Scotland will see some wind and "blustery showers".
The forecaster said the weekend will see a "north-south split" as the weather will be similar on Sunday.
The south will see a temperature of high teens or possibly 21C (69.8) in the South East, while northern England will have highs of 17C (62.6F), and western Scotland could be as low as 13C (55.4F).
Mr Panton-King said that while it is not a heatwave there is still plenty of nice weather around.
And the forecast for the rest of June still looks promising, with a good deal of fine and dry weather across most of the UK next week. Temperatures will be near or slightly above average in most parts, with the south being particularly warm.
A spokesman for the Met Office said: "The weather may turn more mixed over the weekend of th 13th and 14th, with a chance that windier and unsettled conditions could affect the UK for a few days. However, beyond this the trend is for more settled conditions to become re-established over the country."
A high pressure is expected to become established across the north of the UK through late June.
Earlier this week, bookies slashed the odds of June being the hottest on record.
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