East Midlands

Headline:

Increasingly bright, sunny and very warm through the week.

Today:

Rather cloudy initially but soon brightening up from the south. Becoming warm in the afternoon, particularly in the south, where there may be some brief sunny spells. Breezy, especially near coasts and hills. Maximum temperature 27 °C.

Tonight:

Increasingly cloudy through the evening and overnight, with outbreaks of light rain possible during the early hours. Breezy, especially near coasts and hills. Minimum temperature 15 °C.

Tuesday:

A largely cloudy start, especially across western hills. Turning bright, with some sunny spells later in the day. Winds easing. Warm. Maximum temperature 26 °C.

Outlook for Wednesday to Friday:

Dry and sunny to end the week. Light winds, though breezier across hills and for most on Friday. Temperatures increasing, becoming very warm or hot.

Northern and western parts may be unsettled at first with heavy rain or thundery showers, before high pressure becomes reestablished. This will continue to bring dry and very warm weather across England and Wales, but always with an ongoing chance of thunderstorms moving in from France. High pressure will likely amplify northwards to bring periods of drier and warmer weather to most of Scotland and Northern Ireland too. Winds will be light to moderate for most, but gusty around any thunderstorms. Temperatures by day will be widely very warm, hot or even very hot in parts of the south. There are signs for the heatwave to ease back to more normal summer temperatures through the next week commencing Monday 13 July.

High pressure is more likely than low pressure for the rest of July, probably bringing settled and drier conditions. Occasionally this dry and warm weather could be interrupted by outbreaks of rain and stronger winds, which will be more probable in the north or west. As is typical for the time of year, there is a risk of heavy, thundery showers during any warm spells. These conditions are likely to persist through to the start of August, with unsettled interruptions perhaps becoming more common, but confidence at this range is low. In any case, temperatures are likely to be above average overall, with a greater than normal chance of hot conditions developing at times, especially in the south.