'Wet and windy weather' ahead - as western regions brace for nearly a month's worth of rain in a weekend

Britain is facing a wet and windy start to the school holidays with forecasts suggesting much of the UK could see persistent and heavy rainfall over the weekend - dragging on into next week.

Much of Southern Europe and the Mediterranean regions are in the grips of back-to-back heatwaves, with the anti-cyclone Charon sweeping its way across the continent - and meteorologists are warning there is no end to the sometimes record-breaking temperatures in sight just yet.

But the UK looks set to skip the often extreme heat, with medium-term forecasts currently indicating up to 60mm of rain could fall in parts of the country throughout the 48-hour block, forecasters told the Mirror.

With the UK's average rainfall for the month of July sitting at 82.5mm, as much as 75% of a typical month's rain could fall across Saturday and Sunday, it reported.

The Met Office told NationalWorld some regions in the west could expect 30 to 40mm of rainfall alone, with higher totals over higher ground.

Deputy chief meteorologist Chris Almond said as it moves into the weekend, the UK is in for "yet another spell of wet and windy weather", with persistent rain in many parts of the country.

"An area of low pressure approaching from the west will bring increasing cloud on Friday evening, followed by rain and some strong winds through Saturday," he said. "The heaviest rain will be in the west, particularly over higher ground, and the strongest winds in exposed coastal regions in south and southwest England, as well as southern Wales."

Many places would see further spells of rain or heavy showers throughout Sunday and Monday, with southern Scotland, parts of Northern Ireland and northern England looking to be most at risk, Mr Almond said.

"The far north of Scotland, however, may fare best throughout, with more in the way of sunshine and fewer showers," he added.

Mr Almond said that although it may feel quite muggy at times over the weekend in parts of England, temperatures overall would be quite disappointing for July, "and it will feel decidedly cool in the rain".

There was not expected to be much of a reprieve in the week to come either, he warned. "The unsettled conditions then look set to continue, with another area of low pressure due to arrive by the middle of next week."

This comes after the UK experienced its hottest June since records began last month, smashing the previous records recorded in 1940 and 1976. The average monthly temperature in June 2023 reached 15.8C. This marked a 0.9C increase on the record last set almost four decades ago.