Britain is set to enjoy a month of warm, sunny and dry weather from Friday as spring arrives 10 days early, forecasters said.
After weeks of bitterly cold weather, the country is set to bask in temperatures of up to 64F (18C) this weekend as the sun sweeps away the last of winter.
Forecasters said on Thursday night that temperatures in the coming weeks could rise even more to a balmy 68F (20C).
The Met Office said the next month showed no signs of a repeat of the snow, Arctic gales and torrential downpours that have hit parts of the country over previous weeks.
The mercury is set to top 55F (13C) today ahead of a warm, sunny weekend with temperatures hitting 59F (15C) in England on Sunday and nearly 61F (16C) in Aberdeen, Scotland.
Other forecasters predicted higher temperatures over the weekend and well into next week but they are unlikely to reach the record 78F (25.6C) recorded in Cambridgeshire on March 29, 1968.
Warm air began crossing the country from the south-west on Thursday, with a high pressure zone remaining for up to a month and with it, warm and dry air.
Temperatures are expected to be up to 10C higher than England’s normal 9.3C (48.7F) peaks in March.
The spring weather, starting 10 days before the March 20 equinox most consider the end of winter, is expected to stay until the Easter long weekend, starting on April 6.
It raises the prospect of a repeat of last year’s Easter heat wave when millions of holidaymakers flocked to beaches across the country to make the most of the unseasonably warm weather.
But the prospect of a lack of spring showers will be viewed with dismay in many drought-hit areas, as Britain faces hosepipe bans in the coming weeks.
Helen Chivers, a Met Office forecaster said on Thursday night that there was no “indication for any colder or wintry weather returning”. She said temperatures were expected “above normal next week”.
“From a temperature and dry weather point of view, the next month could be described as fine spring weather, feeling warm when the sun is out,” she said.
“Settled weather is expected for pretty much all parts as high pressure looks as though it will remain close to the UK for some time.
“People think of showers when they think of spring – but it doesn’t look like we’ll see many of them in the next few weeks, with much of the month dry.”
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