UK Weather: Met Office verdict on when the UK will have sunshine - with the end of July to remain wet & windy

Large areas of the UK will struggle to even reach 20C this weekend as the Met Office predicts more days of wet and windy weather as low pressure sends successive bands of rain across the nation from the west.

Showery conditions are expected over the weekend (July 29, 30) with the south impacted early on, with the band of rain to move north as the weekend progresses. Between 20 and 30mm of rain could fall in the worst-affected areas on Sunday.

Late July sees temperatures usually around the 23/24C mark but temperatures are set to be well below that, with some parts of the UK reaching around 16/17C. Coastal regions won’t be much warmer.

Tom Morgan, meteorologist with the Met Office, told the Mirror: “It is not going to be a typical summer weekend. Downpours are expected in many areas, not as severe as last weekend, but still not what you expect in late July.

“It won’t be a washout but it’ll be breezy. Anywhere is at risk of seeing thunderstorms. Northern areas are at particular risk of thunderstorms and there might be localised impacts. Higher regions are also at risk. There are no weather warnings in place as yet but the situation is being monitored.”

It follows a trend of largely underwhelming weather in the UK in July, which is usually one of the warmest months. According to the Met Office’s long range weather forecast, it may not be until mid to late August until we see sunshine again.

The UK’s July contrasts with the global picture, which has seen the month named the hottest ever as southern Europe is beset by wildfires.

The Met Office’s long-range forecast says: “Likely to remain fairly changeable for the most part through mid to late August. This means further rain or showers at times throughout the UK, with northwestern and western areas perhaps seeing the wettest conditions.

“Some showers may turn heavy and thundery. These unsettled spells are likely to be accompanied by strong winds, which will accentuate the rather cool feel during these periods. There is a increasing possibility towards late August, of a greater incidence of short spells of more settled and warmer weather with lighter winds.”