Don't pack up the barbecue yet as weekend offers 18c sunny surprise

By Louise Eccles for the Daily Mail
Updated: 03:57 EST, 14 April 2011

If you packed away the barbecue after this week’s showers then you may have been too hasty.

The British weather is continuing to keep us guessing with temperatures rising once again in time for the weekend.

Following the hot weather last week, a drizzly few days had put a dampener on dreams of a sun-drenched April.

But Charlie Powell, a forecaster at the Met Office, said: ‘Temperatures will start gradually creeping up from today and should be reaching 18c (64f) by the weekend.'

Sun worshippers: Brighton beach could be packed this weekend as the Met Office forecast temperatures of 18C

Sun worshippers: Brighton beach could be packed this weekend as the Met Office forecast temperatures of 18c

He added: ‘It has felt quite chilly over the last couple of days but that should start disappearing as we see some high pressure blowing in from the South West.

‘We will be getting towards the warm temperatures of last week, but not quite.’

It is good news for those taking part in the London Marathon, as the rain stops in time for Sunday.

However, the sky will remain cloudy, with only an occasional burst of bright sunshine. Mr Powell added: ‘It will be a generally dry day but it won’t be boiling, so it should be more comfortable for those taking part in the marathon.’

It was a promising start to the Easter holidays when temperatures in places such as Southampton and Aberdeenshire rose to an unseasonably warm 23c (73f) – hotter than Athens and Bermuda. The average temperature there in April is 10c (50f).

Enlarge   Outdoor play: Billie Piper enjoyed the recent warm weather with her young son Winston on Primrose Hill, north London

Outdoor play: Billie Piper enjoyed the recent warm weather with her young son Winston on Primrose Hill, north London

A host of celebrities were captured enjoying the warm spring weather, including actress Billie Piper, who picked daisies with her two-year-old son Winston during a trip to the park in Primrose Hill in North London.

Keira Knightley was pictured in an embrace with her new boyfriend Jamie Righton as they sunbathed in a park in east London.

Sun-seekers were disappointed when showers hit much of Britain on Tuesday and continued into the week.

Enlarge   four day forecast


But now hope is once again on the horizon for a sunny summer.

The hottest day of the year so far was  April 6, when the mercury hit 23.9c (75f) in Santon Downham, Suffolk, making it hotter than Barcelona, Crete and Cyprus.

However, the reservoirs are already looking low after the driest March for 50 years.

In some areas, reservoir levels are almost 20 per cent lower than during the drought of 1995, with experts already predicting a water shortage later this year.

One area not struggling for water is Manchester, though, after scientists announced yesterday that more rain is falling on the city every year.

Rainfall is increasing by a third of an inch annually, which equates to ten inches more rain than 30 years ago.


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