Predictions the UK would be “hotter than Hawaii” this week are sadly unlikely to bear fruit, with our weather set to be considerably damper than that in the tropical archipelago.
A blast of tropical maritime air from Spain is indeed headed our way, but it will be falling short of the anticipated heatwave so many had hoped for. [For reference, temperatures in Hawaii are currently around the 28C mark and the region has just emerged from its winter season.]
Monday night will be cloudless and exceptionally mild, with temperatures on Tuesday expected to reach a humid [for us] 21C in London.
A band of rain coming from the south west will progress eastwards, bringing scattered showers across the bottom half of the country and more persistent downpours in the north and in Scotland.
Wednesday was set to be the day that would send the mercury climbing, but while it will still be in the high teens and early 20s, there will be plenty of rain around, with a chance of thunder in the south east.
Come Thursday a cold front is due to meet with the warm air sending the weather gods into disarray once more…
While we aren’t experiencing Hawaiian sunshine, the weather this week does mark a sharp contrast to the snow and bitterly cold temperatures witnessed in late April, in which areas of northern Scotland froze in temperatures as low as minus 8.6C.
Parts of Cumbria chilled in lows of minus 5.5C and Wales saw sub-zero temperatures of minus 5.6C.