Temperatures could reach 18ºC in parts of the UK and Easter Sunday could be the “warmest day of the year so far”, the Met Office has said.
The weather is widely set to be “fine and relatively nice” over the long weekend with “some sunshine” before rain for most areas on Bank Holiday Monday.
There will be “plenty of fine weather as we start off Good Friday”, with a “frosty start in places” but “sunny skies for the vast majority”, Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern said.
For Good Friday afternoon, Mr McGivern said warm sunshine could bring highs of 15ºC or 16ºC in the south and 12ºC to 14ºC further north, with 16ºC expected in London and 15ºC in Cardiff.
But low cloud and mist could bring cooler temperatures of 10ºC to 11ºC to areas on the North Sea coast.
On Saturday, most of the UK can expect spells of sunshine after a frosty start, with highs of 14ºC to 16ºC, Mr McGivern said.
He said Easter Sunday would also start with plenty of fine weather, despite some cloud.
“Bright or sunny spells will make it feel very pleasant indeed, with temperatures potentially reaching 18ºC across parts of the Midlands into Wales and the south-east, mid-teens fairly widely elsewhere away from the North Sea coast, although parts of Norfolk into Yorkshire could feel a bit warmer," Mr McGivern said.
Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan told the PA news agency that this could make Sunday the UK’s hottest day of 2023 so far.
UK temperatures soar - in pictures
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Women enjoy the afternoon sun in Trafalgar Square in London. Getty Images -
People cool off beside the River Thames. AFP -
A cooling ice cream for a young beach-goer in Bridlington, Yorkshire. PA -
A selfie in front of the London Eye, as people enjoy the sunny weather on Westminster Bridge in London. PA -
Bournemouth beach in Dorset. Temperatures of up to 34C - very high for the UK - are expected in London and potentially some parts of East Anglia. PA -
Cycling in the sunshine on Boscombe beach in Dorset. PA -
Crowds hit the beach in Bournemouth. PA -
Sweltering on the London Underground. High temperatures are becoming more common in the UK amid global warming. Bloomberg -
Bournemouth beach is packed with sun-seekers. PA -
Beach-goers shelter under a Union flag umbrella. PA -
A cooling plunge into London Fields Lido in Hackney, east London. PA -
A reminder to stay hydrated in South Kensington tube station, central London. PA -
Fun in the sun on a pedal boat in Warwick. PA -
Striking a sunny pose with a London phone box. A tourist enjoys the heat. PA -
A sunshine stroll near the Houses of Parliament in London. PA
“It’s probably going to be Sunday if we see the warmest day of the year so far," Mr Morgan said.
"So currently, the highest temperature recorded in 2023 is 17.8ºC and that was on March 30 in [Santon Downham] Suffolk, so we’ll probably see temperatures peaking at around 18ºC or so on Easter Sunday.
“It will turn much more unsettled for Bank Holiday Monday, unfortunately, as is quite typical in the UK — a bit of a British love affair, isn’t it, with rain on Bank Holiday Mondays.
“And this Monday will see rain for most places but in the form of showers, primarily, so there will still be a few sunny intervals on Monday. It won’t be a wash-out for most places.”
Mr Morgan said Monday would “be a slightly fresher day but nonetheless still relatively warm”.
“So a bit of a changeable end to the long weekend but some fine weather for most through Good Friday, Saturday and much of Easter Sunday as well," he said.
“Temperatures gradually rising for the first part of the weekend before a slight dip for most on Monday.
“Most places will have some sunshine. It won’t be blue skies for everyone every day.
"I think the best of the sunshine will probably be on Good Friday for the most part of the UK, a bit of high level cloud at times on Easter Day, but it will still feel fairly pleasant in that sunshine given that the winds will be not too strong.
“It’s going to be the north-east basically late on Sunday that will see the heaviest rain.
“There will be some gales around coastal regions as well of Scotland and Northern Ireland, particularly later on Sunday.
"So from a travel point of view … there may well be some temporary difficult driving conditions late on Sunday and perhaps in eastern areas on Monday as well.
"But overall we don’t anticipate any warnings being necessary through this coming weekend.”
