Met Office daily weather: Temperatures on the rise as we hit midweek

The UK is set to experience a marked rise in temperatures midweek, with much of the country enjoying dry and sunny conditions.

While the northwest remains unsettled, elsewhere it will feel increasingly warm, even hot in places, particularly across southern and eastern regions.

A largely dry day is expected across much of the UK on Wednesday, with sunny spells developing widely. However, patchy rain and drizzle will persist across parts of northwest Scotland and possibly the north of Northern Ireland, where it will remain breezy. Elsewhere, light winds and variable cloud cover may bring the odd light shower, but these will be isolated.

Temperatures will climb significantly compared to Tuesday, with a broad swathe of England and eastern Wales reaching between 24°C and 26°C. The highest temperatures are likely in the West Country, where isolated spots may see highs of 28°C. Eastern Scotland and Northern Ireland will also see a further rise in temperatures, though cloud cover may limit the full potential of daytime heating.

On Wednesday night, cloud and patchy drizzle will linger in the northwest, particularly across northwest Scotland and parts of Northern Ireland. Elsewhere, skies will clear, allowing for the development of a few fog patches, especially in western areas. It will be a mild night, particularly across southern and eastern England, where overnight minima are expected to remain between 16°C and 18°C. Elsewhere, temperatures will be near or slightly above average for the time of year.

Thursday will begin cloudy and breezy in the far north and northwest, with some patchy rain or drizzle continuing. However, the rest of the UK will remain dry with sunny intervals. Low cloud may affect some Irish Sea coasts at times. Temperatures will remain near normal in the far northwest but will be widely well above average elsewhere. It will become hot across parts of eastern Wales, central, southern, and eastern England.

READ MORE: Met Office weather: What's the forecast for the week ahead?

Met Office presenter and meteorologist, Aidan McGivern, said: "There’ll be sunny skies for the south and the east first thing Wednesday, but a lot of cloud elsewhere. The weak frontal zone in the northwest will continue to bring out breaks of light rain and drizzle to the north and west of Scotland. Some low cloud around coasts, but elsewhere across the UK brightens up. It's mostly dry into the afternoon and it's turning warmer day by day.

“Temperature rises are expected through the rest of the week. 26 to 28 Celsius in some of the hotter spots across central parts of the UK. It's even warmer across northern areas as the cloud breaks up and fronts push further north. And that's because we've got higher pressure building in from the southwest. This extension of the Azores high moves into the UK and as you can see by Thursday and Friday it's becoming widespread across the country and that's going to lead to day-by-day temperature rises and with a slight easterly air flow setting up through Friday and the weekend. Actually, it's not the southeast where we'll see the highest temperatures. It's more towards the north and the west.

“Certainly compared with what we'd normally expect at this time of year, the biggest anomalies compared with climate will be across the far north and west of the UK. And we're talking about widely temperatures in the high 20s and low 30s. So yeah, increasingly warm, if not hot, in many places by the end of the week and into the weekend. That high pressure bringing plenty of sunshine, although there will be some misty, low cloud around certain coasts."

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