Northern Ireland to 'miss out' on heatwave this weekend but temperatures still to hit reach at least 21C

The forecaster said that ‘while those in the south and east of the UK will see heatwave criteria met over the weekend and into the start of next week, it’s a more changeable outlook for Northern Ireland, with periods of showers, rain and some sunny spells at times’.

He said that tomorrow (Friday) ‘will be a fairly cloudy day in Northern Ireland, with more persistent drizzly rain in western areas, though sometimes drifting further east through the day’.

‘While those further south in the UK start to see temperatures increase on Saturday, Northern Ireland will see an initial band of rain move from west to east, before drying up later in the day and leaving some sunnier spells in the afternoon for many, with temperatures possibly reaching into the low 20s,’ he added.

‘Some showers and cloud are also possible on Sunday, with the best of any drier weather further east, though there will still be a good deal of cloud through the day.

‘Temperatures around 21C once again,’ he added.

The great news comes after the UK daily weather extremes reported that the highest maximum temperature in Northern Ireland yesterday was 19.1 °C in Armagh.

And the highest rainfall reported yesterday was 2.8 mm at Aldergrove.

Looking further ahead, the Met Office forecast for Monday 30 Jun - Wednesday 9 Jul is: ‘A low pressure system passes to the northwest of the UK at the start of the period bringing wetter windier conditions to the northwest.

‘Elsewhere a good deal of dry and locally hot weather early in the period, and its possible the odd thunderstorm could develop in response to the heat before it likely turns cooler from the west around the middle of next week.

‘Beyond this there will be a good deal of dry weather for many under the influence of higher pressure.

‘There is also the chance of further very warm, perhaps locally hot weather, as brief bursts of hotter air encroach from the continent, but probably fairly short-lived.

‘Should these occur they bring with them the threat of thunderstorms’.

And the forecast for Thursday 10 Jul - Thursday 24 Jul is that ‘conditions will likely continue to be changeable through much of July’.

‘The wettest and windiest conditions most likely towards the northwest with a risk of some heavy rain at times, especially over hills.

‘Southern and eastern areas are most favoured for longer drier and more settled spells, although even here some occasional rain or showers will be possible, perhaps thundery.

‘There are signs of more widely settled weather during the second half of July, however this signal is very tentative.

‘Temperatures are expected to be above average for most areas, especially towards the southeast where there will be an ongoing chance of some very warm or hot conditions at times’.