UK weather: Temperatures forecast to soar next week after record May lows

Met Office predicts 10C rise in some places by next Wednesday

Temperatures in the UK are set to soar into the mid-20s at the start of next week after edging up over the weekend to bring an end to an unseasonably chilly spill.

There will be highs of 19C on Saturday and 22C on Sunday, before temperatures climb to the mid-20s on Tuesday.

On Friday, southeast England will see maximum temperatures of 18C and will be noticeably warmer than earlier this week.

Tom Morgan, a meteorologist at the Met Office, told The Independent: “We are going to see temperatures rise after what has been a very chilly week for the middle of May.

“We’ll gradually see temperatures edging up day-on-day."

The Met Office this week confirmed some of the lowest May temperatures on record overnight.

Caused by Arctic air and clear skies, the temperature in Katesbridge in Northern Ireland plunged to -6.1C overnight on Wednesday.

Other individual locations also recorded their lowest May temperatures on record on Monday and Wednesday at -4 and -5C.

Daytime temperatures have generally hovered around 13 or 14C this week, meaning that next week’s conditions will signal a “pronounced rise”.

In certain parts of the UK, next Wednesday will be a 10C warmer than temperatures this week.

Scotland and Northern Ireland will be “unsettled” over the weekend, with heavy periods of rain predicted for western Scotland, but both nations are set to enjoy some fine weather next week.

However, next week's dry conditions will mean certain parts of the UK have gone a “prolonged” period without much rain.

“Lots of gardeners and farmers are in need of rain now,” Mr Morgan said.