UK told 28C heatwave looming with 'exact date' it starts announced

The UK is set to experience a heatwave from "mid May" with highs of 28C "likely", according to a weather expert and forecaster. Jim Dale, Senior Meteorological Consultant at British Weather Services, said we have seen "increased warmth and increased humidity" as of late.

Speaking out after the first May Bank Holiday weekend, Mr Dale explained: "For now, we're locked into - generally speaking - lower pressure than we'd want. So therefore across this Bank Holiday weekend and just beyond it, we are at the mercy of further showers, further thunderstorms." But Mr Dale expects there to still be "plenty of dry weather" in the coming days and it could warm up next week.

He told us: "There is an indication it’ll start warming up by Thursday (May 9). We get three days I think, Thursday, Friday, Saturday next week, [it looks likely to be] dry, probably sunny, probably pleasant - universally so. And by that I’m talking 21C, 22C, 23C.

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"So we're back into the low-, maybe even mid-20Cs." He said: "As for heatwave weather, anything in the 27C, 28C category, at the moment I haven't got it this side of the mid-month period.

"It becomes more and more likely in the second half of the month, for common sense reasons. If we get a dry spell there's every chance of getting to 25C, 26C quite easily. But for that we need a southerly flow, we need something coming up from Spain way or Algeria way."

Looking at this week, Netweather TV explained of Tuesday (May 7): "A quieter day on Tuesday, as high pressure starts to build in. There will be sunny spells and variable amounts of cloud, which will tend to be shallow convective cloud that will tend to fill the sky and will produce some showers across more northern and western areas, though generally lighter than Monday.

"Best of the sunshine across eastern areas. Where the sun comes out, pleasantly warm, with temperatures reaching 16-19C, perhaps 20C in a few spots." And of Wednesday it added: "High pressure become more established on Wednesday, so most places should stay dry, not wall-to-wall sunshine though, although there will be sunny spells for many, cloud will bubble up and fill the skies in places, perhaps thick enough for the odd light shower, but most places dry. Temperatures reaching 17-20C widely."