17/08/2014 Weather for the Week Ahead

Next weekend is the final bank holiday weekend of the summer season

for Northern Ireland, England and Wales.

I'm sure you want to know the general trend of that forthcoming weekend.

Stay with us, I'll have more at the end of this forecast.

The general trend over the next few days means more of an autumnal feel,

with this area of low pressure the driving force and

strong North-westerly winds, gales, likely across Scotland.

Even further inland as well, making it feel quite cool,

with a real rush of showers across Scotland

and perhaps for Northern Ireland for a time.

Big waves as well so anyone on a sailing holiday in the Northwest,

even a walking holiday, please take note.

A dying weather front will continue to clear further South

so by the middle of Sunday afternoon England and Wales should,

after a pretty disappointing start, see an improving picture,

with sunny spells coming through.

It'll still be quite windy but hopefully, with some sunshine

and fewer showers, temperatures should peak between the high teens,

maybe as high as 20, 21 degrees. Similar story further North.

Fewer showers, some sunny spells into the afternoon.

Showers always most frequent along the North and West-facing coasts

of Northern Ireland and for Scotland as well.

Feeling really quite raw on those exposed coasts.

For the time of year, very disappointing indeed.

Now, those are strong winds will continue through the night and they

will drive some showers further South as well, across England and Wales.

A lot of cloud around and because of the winds it's not going to be

a cold night. Overnight lows generally of 10-13 degrees.

So we start off Monday morning with that area of low pressure just

drifting further into the North Sea,

and that means the strongest of the winds closest to the low,

so down through the Northeast coast during Monday.

Hopefully on Monday there will be fewer showers around

but it's still going to be a windy day and, because the winds are coming

from that North-westerly direction, a coolish feel for this time of year.

Temperatures down a good three or four degrees on what

we should be seeing, really, and there will still be some showers

driven along with the strength of the wind. So it's a coolish day.

13-15 degrees further North.

We still just cling on to 20, 21 perhaps in the Southeast corner

but things will stay with that coolish feel, I suspect,

into Tuesday as well. And this is what we call a little trough.

It's just going to enhance the flow of showers

out to the North and the West during Tuesday.

So there will be perhaps lines of more organised showers

and a cooler feel even down into the Southeast.

13-18 degrees, the high.

As we move out of Tuesday, the winds will start to fall lighter.

That will be quite noticeable. So lighter winds around on Tuesday.

Hopefully a slightly drier day and so, therefore,

hopefully a slightly better feel to the day as well.

Still can't rule out a few showers.

Still disappointing to the North but, again, highs possibly 20 degrees.

By the time we get to the middle of the week,

hopefully the winds will start to swing round to

more of a Westerly direction and that's a gradual sign

of things slowly improving in terms of the feel of things.

We still could see more organised bands of showery rain

up into the far North and West and still those temperatures

not quite where they should be for the time of year.

Now, as we move towards the bank holiday weekend,

it looks as though this area of high pressure may well build

and we still keep that Westerly flow

so I suspect things will slowly calm down

and hopefully start to warm up just a touch

but there are indications that it'll be a cool start.

There will be some rain at times, particularly to the North and West.

Potentially those temperatures rising

but it will still stay pretty cool through the night.

So, it's not good to be the best of bank holiday weekends

but it could certainly be a lot worse.