Simon King
Lead Weather Presenter
If you are in the south of the United Kingdom, you may feel like you have had enough of the rain by the weekend.
Heavy rain fell on Thursday and Friday across southern parts of England and Wales, with over half a month’s worth of rain falling in some places. Exeter recorded 34.6mm of rainfall in 24 hours, compared to a September average of 60.3mm.
St Catherine’s Point in the Isle of Wight recorded two thirds of its monthly average in the same time period.
However, while the persistent rain will ease in the south over the weekend, you will still need an umbrella handy as heavy showers are forecast.
Away from the south, the weather is looking drier and brighter with a bit of warmth.
The weather then stays unsettled for many of us as we go into the new week ahead.
Showers for the south, sunny spells further north
Heavy rain led to disruption to road, train and air travel across the south-east of England on Thursday.
This rain was associated with an area of low pressure across Europe which will gradually move closer to the UK over the weekend.
Low pressure – where air ascends in the atmosphere – is often associated with the most unsettled weather of wind and rain.
For Saturday in southern England, there will be an improvement but with the chance of a few showers before they turn heavier and more frequent later into the evening.
Further north, while an odd shower cannot be ruled out, it will be largely dry with sunny spells.
It will also be pretty warm for many with temperatures into the low to mid-20s.
By Sunday, as the area of low pressure moves further north in the UK, the risk of showers becomes more widespread across the UK.
It won’t be a washout though.
Despite the showers, there will also be some spells of sunshine at times.
No sign of a heatwave next week
Early next week will be largely fine and dry across much of the UK but gradually low pressure will become the dominant weather pattern again.
As it moves in to the north of Scotland, an unsettled north to north-westerly breeze will pick up bringing scattered showers.
These showers will predominantly affect western areas but a few will progress further eastwards.
This cool wind direction also means the temperature will drop below the seasonal average.
As for later in the week and the rest of September, check out our monthly outlook.