The UK could be set for thunderstorms and heavy rain this week.
It’s been far from settled conditions across UK in recent days, with Greater Manchester and the North West receiving its fair share of heavy rain showers, but now the Met Office is predicting that warm air from the continent will drive temperatures up later this week, and with that comes the chance of thunderstorms.
A plume of warm air moving in from the south is set to drive a change to the weather later this week, weather forecasters predict.
While rain and showers across the northern half of the UK eased on on Monday night, leaving us with a drier day and spells of sunshine in the afternoon yesterday, things could be about to take a turn for the worst once this evening rolls around.
Heard there's a possibility of thunderstorms this week? ⛈️
These could begin arriving from Wednesday night into Thursday as a plume pushes in from the south
The Met Office does admit that today will be a ‘largely fine and dry day’ for much of the UK, with only certain parts appearing cloudy, the North West not included that, but as the evening begins to set in, so does the potential heavy and thundery showers, predicted to move in through the evening and overnight from the south west.
Alarmingly, some western areas could see 20-40mm of rain fall in just a few hours as these intense downpours move through to the North East.
There could ‘frequent lightning’ for some areas too.
Thunderstorms and ‘intense downpours’ are forecast to hit the UK from this evening / Credit: The Manc Group
While there are no severe weather warnings issued at the moment, it is possible thunderstorm warnings may be issued this week, the Met Office has hinted, so you may want to keep your eyes peeled.
“After largely benign weather early in the week, some intense, thundery showers will move in on Wednesday evening,” commented the Met Office’s Deputy Chief Meteorologist, Mike Silverstone.
“These thunderstorms are being triggered by some warm, humid air that is moving into the UK from the South, and intense rainfall could see 20-40mm accumulating over just a few hours, which could cause some disruption too.”
This week the temperatures are rising and the humidity is building and from Wednesday we are going to see some thundery storms developing.
Find out all the details on this week's weather in our Week Ahead forecast with Alex Deakin 👇 pic.twitter.com/7P1bnQztFN
Think that’s the end of the thunderstorms for the week? Think again.
Once that batch moves North through Thursday, leaving more settled weather for a time through Friday for most, another band of thunderstorms moves in again later on Friday evening, apparently bringing ‘further intense rainfall’ into the early hours of Saturday.
By the end of the weekend though, it’s predicted that the ‘humid and thundery airmass’ will be displaced by ‘fresher’ and ‘generally more settled conditions’ spreading east across the UK.
Featured Image – Wikimedia Commons
News
Same-sex penguin couple to raise rare baby chick together at Chester Zoo
Emily Sergeant
10 rare baby penguin chicks have hatched at Chester Zoo, and one of them has some rather unique parents.
The rare new arrivals are highly-threatened Humboldt penguins, which is one of the most at-risk out of the world’s 17 species of penguin, and began hatching from their eggs throughout April, but since then, they have spent their first few weeks of life tucked away in their nest burrows.
Humboldt penguins – which are ound on the rocky coastal shores of Peru and Chile – are listed as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), as they face a number of threats in the wild, including climate change, overfishing, and rising ocean temperatures.
Commonly with penguins, both mum and dad share feeding and parenting duties.
Keepers at Chester Zoo support the parents by providing plenty of extra fish, which the adult penguins swallow, blend into a protein-rich soup, and then regurgitate to feed the chicks.
But in what is a heartwarming development, one of the chicks is being raised by a same-sex penguin couple, Scampi and Flounder, as the devoted duo were seen to step in to help raise one of two eggs laid by another penguin pair, Wotsit and Peach.
The zoo’s bird experts carefully shared the eggs between the two nests to help give both chicks the best possible start and help improve chances of successful fledging, and now keepers say the chicks are just ‘days away’ from taking the plunge into their very first swimming lessons at the zoo’s Penguin Island habitat.
10 rare Humboldt penguins have hatched at Chester Zoo / Credit: Chester Zoo
As part of a long-standing zoo tradition, conservationists pick a different naming theme for the chicks each year, and this year’s cohort have been named after stars and celestial wonders – with some of the chicks being Ursa, Alcyone, Orion, Dorado, and Cassiopeia.
“10 chicks hatching in one season marks a bumper year for the penguins here,” commented Zoe Sweetman, who is the Team Manager of Penguins at Chester Zoo.
“It’s fantastic news for the species and a brilliant success for the international conservation breeding programme. The fluffy new arrivals are all being looked after brilliantly by their parents, having nearly quadrupled in size since they first emerged.
“They’re now days away from a really exciting milestone – their very first swimming lessons, which is always a thrill to witness as they dive into the pool for the very first time.”
Featured Image – Chester Zoo
News
Bob Vylan dropped from Manchester music festival following Glastonbury controversy
Danny Jones
English punk rap duo Bob Vylan have been dropped from an upcoming music festival in Manchester following the recent controversy surrounding their set at Glastonbury 2025.
The media storm surrounding their much-talked-about and heavily televised Glasto appearance has seen them reportedly dropped by their agency and their US Visas cancelled, along with multiple concerts – one of those being right here in Greater Manchester.
Bob Vylan were scheduled to play RADAR Fest at Victoria Warehouse in Stretford this weekend, but now the organisers have informed gig-goers that the artists will not be performing in their planned slot on Saturday.
The alternative music event did provide any additional details, posting nothing but this image:
For anyone unaware, Vylan were heavily criticised for the pro-Palestine chants, which Glastonbury itself has deemed as having “crossed a line”, labelling the chants against the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) as antisemitic.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has also commented on the situation.
In addition to RADAR, Vylan were also due to appear at Kave Fest in France the following Sunday, 6 July, but the music event has also decided not to host them.
The BBC also opted not to broadcast Northern Irish band Kneecap as part of their coverage this year, as the Belfast rap trio have also been outspoken on the issue, among many other musicians of late.
Responding to the decision on social media not long after the news broke, the act simply shared the post on their Instagram story along with the caption: “Silence is not an option. We will be fine, the people of Palestine are hurting. Manchester, we will be back.”
Emily Sergeant -
11th June 2025 
