Bank holiday weekend weather: A windy washout?
It's an unseasonably blustery week, with heavy rain and thundery showers such as here in Ramsbottom in Bury
- Published
The August bank holiday weekend in Northern Ireland, England and Wales is approaching.
It's always a busy one on the roads, for resorts, campsites and festivals ahead of the start of meteorological autumn and the inevitable cooler, darker conditions. Unsurprisingly, weather plays a big part in all the fun. But will it be ice-creams or sweaters on the beach this year?
An improving picture
Despite the rain and strong winds, there has also been some sunshine
You'd be forgiven for writing off any outdoor plans after what will have been a particularly wet and windy week across the UK. The forecast for Thursday and Friday includes inland gales, outbreaks of rain and even the remnants of an ex- hurricane.
By Friday afternoon, the heaviest rain will have curled away, the unseasonably brisk winds will have eased and for most of us there should be some sunshine, although always the risk of more showers in the north and west.
On Friday night into Saturday, a band of rain will push north-eastwards across southern England. With more showers in the north-west, the best of the weather could be across much of Wales, north-east England and eastern areas of Northern Ireland, with sunshine developing later on in south-west England.
Sunday and Monday turn windier again, with more showers in the north-west and the driest, brightest conditions in the south-east. Temperatures will be at or just slightly below the seasonal average, but in any sunny spells of course the August sunshine will still pack a warm punch. For the vast majority of us, over the course of the weekend there will be a lot of dry weather, so it won't be a total washout.
Wet in Scotland
The rain has been relentless in Glasgow. By Saturday some parts of Scotland could have seen as much as 120mm of rain this week
Scotland's August bank holiday fell a lot earlier in the month. Here the schools have returned and for western areas of the country it will also feel as if autumn has too. With a steady stream of low pressure systems moving through on a strong jet stream, it's north-west Scotland that is bearing the brunt of the wet and windy weather this week. This weekend, showers will continue to feed into the north-west but crucially, it won't be raining all the time. For eastern Scotland there should be plenty of dry weather with more sunshine.
Further ahead?
The timing of this year's August Bank Holiday may well be lamented by many in south-east England as there are signs pressure and warmth could build back again next week in time for the following weekend.
Keep checking
As always, it's hard to nail down a precise forecast this far ahead and there is still a lot of uncertainty particularly regarding the extent of the rain in the south on Saturday morning.
Whether you have travel or camping plans or not, keep up to For the latest forecast – rain or not – check ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ Weather online or on the app.