Met Office daily weather: Unsettled with rain, warmth and some sunshine

The weather is set to be unsettled, with a mix of rain, cloud, and some brighter spells.

Thursday begins cloudy, with outbreaks of rain affecting Wales and north-west England, gradually moving north into Northern Ireland and southern Scotland. The rain will be particularly heavy over western hills, making for a wet start in these areas.

Further south, across southern and south-west England, conditions remain rather cloudy and drizzly, although brighter skies are expected to develop to the lee of hills, spreading more widely across England as the day progresses. Here, it will feel warm and humid, especially where the sun breaks through.

In Scotland, the far north and north-west will see brighter conditions, but with scattered showers, mainly in exposed areas. Gales in the far north and north-west will slowly ease through the day. By Thursday night, clear intervals and a few showers persist in the far north, while much of the country remains under a good deal of cloud, with further outbreaks of rain for many western and northern areas. South-east England is likely to stay mostly dry. Temperatures will be mild or very mild away from the far north, with maxima of 21-23°C likely east of Welsh high ground, and isolated 24°C possible in eastern England.

Outlook for Friday

Friday sees a band of cloud and rain lying south-west to north-east across the country, with the most persistent rain for hills in north-west England and north-west Wales. South-east of this band, conditions are generally fine, warm or very warm, with variable cloud and sunny spells. Mainland Scotland will see some brighter and drier weather later in the day. Temperatures will be nearer average in the north-west, with a mixture of sunny spells and showers, and some longer spells of rain in the far north.

Met Office presenter and meteorologist, Aidan McGivern, said: “Thursday morning will be a bright start for the east and south of Scotland, but cloud and rain from the trailing front pushes north into Northern Ireland, southern Scotland, northwest England, and North Wales during the day, leading to brighter skies once again across the south of the country, but a lot of cloud.

“If we do get some brightness, we've got this warm sector across the south. Relatively mild and humid and temperatures getting up to summerlike values, 24°C, perhaps 25°C if there is enough sunshine for parts of East Anglia, but it's more likely to stay cloudy with temperatures most likely peaking at 23 or 24°C. Cooler for the north of Scotland, obviously where we've got the stronger winds and those blustery showers. These fronts continue to slowly move north into central Scotland and Northern Ireland during Thursday night.

“Some heavier rain develops across Northern England, the Republic of Ireland as well, but across much of England and Wales, well, it is drier with some clear spells and another mild night to come.”