00:00Hi there and welcome to the weekend weather update from the Met Office.
00:03This Saturday is the summer solstice, peak sun strength, but also in eastern parts of
00:08the UK, peak heat wave with fresher air arriving through the day from the west.
00:14But as that fresher air collides with the plume of heat coming up from the south, we're
00:20likely to see some very severe thunderstorms in places.
00:24Now, Saturday starts with widespread warmth after an uncomfortable night for sleeping
00:28for many of us and temperatures quickly rising with the sunny skies in the east in particular.
00:32But we're already seeing additional cloud and some sporadic showers breaking out across
00:37Scotland, Western England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
00:40These will be very hit and miss through the day.
00:42Old rumble of thunder possible with some of these showers, but the main activity likely
00:47to come towards the end of the afternoon and into the evening.
00:50More on that in a moment ahead of any shower development and cloud development.
00:54We're likely to see temperatures peak across eastern parts of England, the Midlands into
00:57north-east England, south-east Scotland, high 20s, low 30s widely, perhaps as high as 33,
01:04or if all the right conditions come together, 34 Celsius.
01:08But Western areas are more likely to see the peak temperatures on Friday because at this
01:12stage, fresher air is starting to make inroads.
01:15Hence, the patchy cloud and those sporadic showers breaking out as the day progresses.
01:20Very hit and miss showers.
01:22But by the end of the day, we are concerned about all the ingredients coming together to
01:28provide the set-up for some severe thunderstorms.
01:31And the main focus region at the moment is across this central site of the UK, North Wales,
01:35North Midlands, Northern England, Southern Scotland.
01:38That's where there is the greatest risk of very large thunderstorms, frequent lightning,
01:43large hail, heavy rain, gusty winds for a few hours on Saturday late afternoon and into the
01:50evening.
01:51And if this comes off, because all the ingredients are in the right place, but it's at the moment
01:57too early to say exactly when and where, then it would cause considerable impact.
02:01So that's certainly an aspect of the forecast we're keeping a close eye on and we'll keep you
02:05updated.
02:05Either way, this system is going to move its way north-eastwards and eventually allow that
02:11fresher Atlantic air to move in.
02:13But we keep the plume of warmth and increasingly humid air across eastern parts of the UK on
02:20Saturday night.
02:21So another uncomfortable night for sleeping in the east, perhaps a little more comfortable
02:25towards the west as that Atlantic air returns.
02:28And you can see the temperature contrast by the time we get to Sunday with that return to
02:33average towards the west.
02:34But we keep the warmth in the east and the potential for more sunny skies on Sunday.
02:38Across east Anglia and the south, east allowing temperatures to rise up to the mid to high
02:4220s once again.
02:44Although later in the afternoon, I suspect that cooler air will start to arrive.
02:48Elsewhere, a lot more cloud, certainly a return to fresher conditions and some showers, particularly
02:53across Scotland, Northern Ireland, North West England and North Wales.
02:57Even some thunderstorms coming along, but not as severe as Saturday night's potential
03:01thunderstorms.
03:02And you can see that temperature contrast there across the UK.
03:0528 Celsius still possible in Norwich.
03:07It looks likely that will peak around the middle of the day.
03:10But we're back to the high teens, low 20s towards the west.
03:14And that fresher, more mixed Atlantic weather is with us for the start of next week.
03:20But the main focus at the moment, the main cause for concern are the very high temperatures
03:24in the east on Saturday, followed by those severe thunderstorms and when they do happen
03:30later in the day.
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