Easter Sunday could be warmest day of 2023 so far with highs of 18C

Easter Sunday could be the warmest day of the year so far with highs of up to 18C expected in parts of the UK. 

The Met Office said the Easter weekend weather is set to be "fine and relatively nice" with "some sunshine" before most places see rain on Monday's bank holiday.

Aidan McGivern, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said there will be "plenty of fine weather as we start off Good Friday" with a "frosty start in places" but "sunny skies for the vast majority".

Friday's "warm sunshine" could bring highs of "15C or 16C in the south, 12C to 14C further north", with 16C expected in London and 15C in Cardiff.

But low cloud and mist will mean areas on the North Sea coast will see cooler temperatures of 10C to 11C.

"The vast majority" of the UK can expect "spells of sunshine" after a "frosty start" on Saturday, with highs of 14C to 16C and conditions "feeling very pleasant indeed", Mr McGivern said.

Easter Sunday will also start off with "plenty of fine weather" despite "a bit more cloud in the sky".

"Bright or sunny spells will make it feel very pleasant indeed, with temperatures potentially reaching 18C across parts of the Midlands into Wales and the South East, mid-teens fairly widely elsewhere away from the North Sea coast, although parts of Norfolk into Yorkshire could feel a bit warmer," Mr McGivern said.

Met Office meteorologist Tom Morgan said Sunday could be the hottest day of 2023 so far.

"It's probably going to be Sunday if we see the warmest day of the year so far, so currently the highest temperature recorded in 2023 is 17.8C and that was on March 30 in Suffolk, so we'll probably see temperatures peaking at around 18C or so on Easter Sunday," he said.

"It will turn much more unsettled for Bank Holiday Monday, unfortunately, as is quite typical in the UK - a bit of a British love affair, isn't it, with rain on Bank Holiday Mondays.

"And this Monday will see rain for most places but in the form of showers primarily, so there will still be a few sunny intervals on Monday, it won't be a washout for most places."

He said Monday will "be a slightly fresher day but nonetheless still relatively warm".

"So a bit of a changeable end to the long weekend but some fine weather for most through Good Friday, Saturday and much of Easter Sunday as well."

-sky news