Met Office weather: Thunderstorm warning issued for large part of England, Scotland and Wales

As summer turns to autumn, Sunday could see thunderstorms around the country - and could bring flooding.

The Met Office is warning of a “notable change to our weather” which is due to head in overnight tonight and on Sunday. They say showers and isolated thunderstorms are forecast to develop across parts of southern England on Saturday night, and to be heavier and heavier - and more stormy - by Sunday morning.

A yellow severe weather warning for thunderstorms on Sunday has been issued for a large swathe of England, fringing into eastern Wales and southern Scotland, although it has issued the rider that most places will not see thunder and they could fail to form at all. However, the severity is such that up to 40mm (1.5in) of rain could fall in an hour, and in some places that could be as much as 75mm (3in), which could lead to flooding.

Met Office deputy chief meteorologist Dan Harris, said: “Through Saturday night and into Sunday we’ll see a gradual change in our weather across the UK with an increasing chance of heavy thundery showers developing, particularly across central parts of the UK. Should they develop there is the risk of some local disruption from intense rainfall, gusty winds, lightning and possibly hail too. Not everywhere within the warning area will see thunderstorms, and confidence in any individual location being affected remains extremely low at this time.

“The risk of thunderstorms steadily transfers northwards through Sunday afternoon and into the early evening. If you have plans for Sunday, I’d recommend keeping up to date with the Met Office forecast and any updates to the warnings.”

Summer has been cooler than usual in the UK with “slightly below average sun”, the latest Met Office statistics show. Rainfall has varied between regions but has been average.

A heatwave swept parts of the UK in September last year, with temperatures topping 30C somewhere in the country for seven consecutive days.