Met Office forecasts 22C scorcher as UK to be hotter than Barcelona | Weather | News

Parts of the UK are experiencing the hottest day of the year today (Wednesday 18 March), with temperatures reaching up to 22C.

West Wales and western England may be warmer than Barcelona and Athens and will be the warmest parts of the UK.

“Areas of fog will clear across England and Wales, leaving it with a warm and sunny day,” the Met Office said. Met Office chief forecaster Dan Harris said: “Wednesday looks likely to be the hottest day of the week for many, with high pressure prevailing.

“The hottest spots are likely to be in parts of West Wales and West England, where temperatures of 18-19C, possibly even 20C, are expected under sunny skies. This is due to the additional increase expected from east to south-east winds passing over higher areas, known as the Foehn effect.”

The forecaster also said areas to the south, west and around the Moray coast should see sunshine with temperatures reaching 15-16°C, while an isolated 17°C is possible this afternoon. However, much of Scotland and Northern Ireland will be covered by thicker clouds and there will be more rain. Even hotter conditions with high pressure are expected tomorrow.

While temperatures in the UK will soar above 20C, the mercury in Malaga, Spain, and Santorini, Greece, is only expected to rise to around 17C; Temperatures will be 16C with showers expected.

The Met Office said these areas would be the warmest on Wednesday.

• carmarthenshire
• Ceredigion
• pembrokeshire
• Cornwall
• Devon
• somersett
• dorset
• Bristol
• wiltshire
• Gloucestershire

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The Met Office has also published a forecast for Thursday 19 March. It said: “After a cold start, most will have a warm sunny day with light winds. However, some southern parts of Scotland and northern England will once again remain quite cloudy.”

The forecaster also said the weekend “will be sunny and dry for most as we get closer to the weekend.” There is a risk of widespread rain in the north of Scotland on Saturday and further north on Sunday. The weather will start to cool down.

Here is a long-range forecast covering the period from 23 March to 1 April: “Variable and at times unstable conditions for many parts of the UK at the beginning of this period, with areas of low pressure and their associated frontal zones tracking close to or above the UK.

“These are likely to be most active in the north and slightly weaker further south, closer to the high pressure ridge extending northeastward from the subtropical Atlantic. There is also the potential for a period of gusty windy weather in the first part of this period. By the end of the month, high pressure may become more dominant once again, with plenty of dry air, but there may also be fog and frost overnight.”