London faces a bank holiday washout with heavy winds and rain set to hit southern England on Monday, forecasters have warned.
The capital is expected to see cloudy and rainy weather with brief sunny spells and gusty winds this weekend.
Those planning to spend time outdoors should wear waterproofs with rainfall expected on Saturday and Sunday evening.
An area of low pressure over central Europe is currently pushing a warm air plume from the east across parts of the UK, triggering heavy showers and thunderstorms on Friday.
A yellow weather warning for thunderstorms covers much of central England and parts of Wales until Saturday morning.
Deputy Chief Meteorologist Mark Sidaway said: “There continues to be uncertainty around the track of a low-pressure system which is expected to cross the southern UK this weekend, meaning there is some uncertainty about some of the forecast details.
“While it will remain unsettled with further showers or longer spells of rain, all areas should see some drier conditions at some point and, in any sunshine, it should feel quite warm.”
It comes after Thursday was declared the warmest day of the year for all four home nations.
A temperature of 23.4C was recorded in Santon Downham in Suffolk, beating the previous high of 22.1C from Wednesday.
The mercury hit 22.1C in Kinlochewe and Achnagart, beating Wednesday’s high of 21.9C in Aultbea.
In Wales, a high of 22.8C was felt in Hawarden, Flintshire, while the temperature hit 20.3C in Castlederg, CoTyrone, Northern Ireland.
Meanwhile, the Met Office recorded 4,840 lightning strikes across France and southern Britain overnight Thursday.
Two buildings in Sussex were damaged by lightning strikes, according to West Sussex Fire & Rescue.
A care home in Elmer was struck with damage to its roof while a university building in Chichester sustained damage to its roof and power system.
The service said no one was injured from the strikes and occupants were relocated to safety while the damage was assessed.
