Met Office gives date 18C highs will hit UK after temperatures 'plummet'

The Met Office says temperatures could soar as high as 18C in a matter of days, but not before a chilly end to this week.

Temperatures are set to plummet again overnight on Thursday, with some areas seeing temperatures below 0C by the early hours of Friday morning.

In the north west, temperatures could drop to -1C and the Met Office has warned some rural areas may see some frost or shallow fog patches in the morning.

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Friday will be "feeling chilly", forecaster warned, but will remain mainly dry and sunny. Temperatures are expected to be around 12C in the north west. The weekend is set to be much the same, with cooler temperatures and some cold wind expected.

But from Monday, temperatures are set to rise, with many places seeing above average temperatures for the time of year. The Met Office said some areas in the south and east could see temperatures as high as 18C, with plenty of other areas seeing temperatures in the mid to high teens.

In a post on X today (Thursday), the Met Office said: "It's rather cold out there today and it will stay chilly tomorrow with temperatures below average. But it's due to warm up next week with highs of 18C possible in the south on Monday and perhaps more widely by Tuesday."

Weather maps for early next week show temperatures of 18C currently forecast in areas including London, Ipswich and Dover.

Manchester is currently forecast to be 16C on Monday, rising to 17C on Tuesday and Wednesday. However it looks set to remain chilly overnight with temperatures dropping to around 10C.

However, the warm daytime temperatures are not expected to last too long, with cooler conditions predicted from the end of next week.

The long-range forecast for Tuesday, October 15, to Thursday, October 24, reads: "The UK will initially be between high pressure to the east, and low pressure to the west. In this situation bands of cloud and rain will attempt to push eastwards, and ahead of this its possible we could see some showery activity drawn northwards from the continent.

"However, from midweek onwards it looking likely that the low pressure to the west will become increasingly influential, with an increased chance of rain, showers and perhaps strong winds, especially in the west or northwest.

"With winds from a southerly direction at first, temperatures will likely trend above average, with some warm conditions possible at times, but perhaps returning closer to average later in the week as winds become turn more toward the west."