Weather and climate change

Headline:

Changeable with rain at times. Some overnight frost and fog.

Today:

Outbreaks of sometimes heavy rain, accompanied in places by strong winds will feed north and eastwards across central, southern and eastern England, along with eastern Wales. Elsewhere there will be sunshine and scattered showers, these locally wintry in the north.

Tonight:

Rain and strong winds clearing eastwards from England during the first part of the night, leaving clear spells across the UK with showers in the west. Some frost and fog.

Friday:

Early frost and fog clearing to leave sunshine and showers. Showers heaviest and most frequent in the west and southwest, with hail and thunder possible. Breezy, especially in the southwest.

Outlook for Saturday to Monday:

A changeable few days. A mix of bright or clear spells and showery outbreaks of rain. Some overnight frost and fog patches, the fog locally freezing and slow to clear.

Updated: 04:00 (UTC) on Thu 15 Jan 2026

Throughout this period, the UK will see a battle between Atlantic weather systems attempting to arrive from the west while high pressure and colder conditions attempt to exert some influence from the east. Initially, milder Atlantic air is expected to dominate. This should maintain changeable conditions with showers or longer spells of rain for most. The wettest weather in western parts of the country, drier in the east. Temperatures overall likely to be around average. Later in the period, there is an increased chance that conditions will turn colder. This aspect of the forecast is still somewhat uncertain but the potential transition to colder weather also increases the chance of snow across parts of the country.

Updated: 14:00 (UTC) on Wed 14 Jan 2026

Initially, slowly evolving weather patterns are most likely in the vicinity of the UK, with low pressure typically to the west or southwest and high pressure to the northeast. This configuration brings an increased chance of cold conditions affecting parts of the UK, and the associated risk of wintry hazards at times. Deeper into February, and whilst confidence is naturally low, there may be a transition to more widely unsettled conditions and perhaps a corresponding recovery in temperature back closer to average.

Updated: 15:00 (UTC) on Wed 14 Jan 2026