Met Office weather maps turn scorching orange as 'quite hot' spell looms — but there's a problem

Met Office weather maps turn scorching orange as 'quite hot' spell looms — but there's a problem The Met Office forecasts a rather pleasant spell this week, during which temperatures are anticipated to reach 28C in some parts of the Southeast of England These striking weather maps show Brits will bask in glorious sunshine again — for a short while. Temperatures are slowly set to rise again this week to highs of 28C by Friday, as a band of high pressure moves in from the west. The Met Office stresses, though, thunderstorms are also likely at the end of the week, particularly across parts of the East of England. The mercury struggled at 11.6C in the Shetland Islands and 14.8C in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on Sunday, and Monday has been drizzly across the South of England. Further rain is expected tomorrow, with heaviest outbursts likely across the Southwest of England, according to forecasters. But the Met Office weather map for Friday shows an orange hue across most of the UK, as it will be warmer and drier. Despite the thunderstorms feared on Friday night and into Saturday, the East of England and the Southeast of England are thought to be the hottest places on Friday with 28C and 27C tipped widely across these regions. Honor Criswick, meteorologist at the Met Office, said: "The temperatures [this week] are going to be increasing day by day, especially across the Southeast of England. This is where high pressure is starting to build this week, and we start to bring in a slightly warmer plume of air here as well. "So, there's potentially some very warm if not, quite hot, weather towards the end of the week. However, this may spark off some thunderstorms." While the Met Office has not issued any weather warnings for storms, it says rain will disrupt the warmer period as, on the weekend, parts of south Wales and the Southwest of England could see showers. But even in northern England on Friday, the mercury should reach 20C, warmer than the end of last week. Parts of Lincolnshire and Humberside will be among the hottest areas during Friday, meteorologists understand. And, after the storms and rain across the haphazard weekend, warmer conditions are likely to return throughout the rest of June. The Met Office's long-range forecast, which covers June 20 to June 29, reads: "There is the possibility of some very warm and humid weather across parts of south and southeast Britain at the start of this period and perhaps the chance of a few thunderstorms too. Generally more changeable to the north and west at first, but there is a signal for high pressure to build more widely as we move towards the latter part of June. "This likely brings more widely drier, settled conditions with temperatures probably remaining above average for most. It is still possible that Atlantic low pressure may still bring brief spells of wet and windy weather. There is a chance that the hot conditions, could return northwards accompanied by a thunderstorm risk; this all dependent on the orientation of the aforementioned high pressure."