UK weather forecast: Britain set for scorching bank holiday as temperatures push towards 30C

Blistering weekend forecast after week of storms and high winds

Britain looks set to bask in bank holiday sunshine as forecasters predict temperatures will soar past 25C in parts of the country.

Temperatures are expected to increase dramatically for the three-day break, with the highest likely to be recorded in the south of England.

In London and the South East, the warmest weather may not even arrive until Monday, when temperatures could push closer towards the 30C mark.

The expected heatwave would come hot on the heels of a week in which parts of the UK endured a wretched spell of freezing winds and torrential downpours.

"There is an area of warm air pushing up from the south which could give warmer weather over the bank holiday weekend,” Met Office forecaster Sophie Yeomans told The Independent.

"Many places in the south of England could see 19C or 20C, most places will be in the low 20s and we could see 25C in London and the south-east.

"Heading into Monday we could see the high 20s."

The average UK temperature for May is 15C, while the hottest day ever recorded during the month was a 33C in 1944.

However, people in Northern Ireland and Scotland may miss out on the best of the weather, with temperatures of 13C or 14C forecast.

"There is going to be a weather front over Northern Ireland and Scotland which could bring clouds and a chance of rain,” Ms Yeomans added.

Heavy rain and strong winds battered parts of the UK earlier this week, with a month's worth of rain falling in 24 hours on Monday in Kent.

One man died after he was washed into a harbour along with two other people in Ramsgate, Kent, in conditions the RNLI described as “atrocious”.

Fallen trees blocked roads in Kent, East Anglia and parts of London, while rising flood water left some drivers needing to be rescued from their vehicles by emergency services.

Yellow weather warnings for high winds were put in place across parts of England, with gusts of 54mph recorded in the southeast.

Temperatures overnight into Tuesday plunged to -4.6C in Aboyne, Aberdenshire, and -4.2C in Redesdale Camp, Northumberland.

Additional reporting by PA