Thunderstorms are set to batter parts of the UK on Sunday before a potential third heatwave later in the week, the Met Office said.
The weather service said there is a mixed forecast for Sunday and Monday, before temperatures are expected to climb back into the low 30Cs by the end of next week – raising the possibility of a third heatwave this summer.
Parts of East Yorkshire, Lincolnshire and the East of England are set for heavy rain, lightning and hail on Sunday, which could cause disruption to transport links.
The rest of the country is also forecast to experience cooler air, cloud and showery spells for the rest of the weekend and early next week, before temperatures begin to rise again.
Marco Petagna, senior meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “The headline is a changeable theme to the next couple of days and then the weather will become more settled as we go into next week.
“It could well reach heatwave criteria again across England and Wales towards the end of next week.
“In the short term, it’s quite a mixed picture. There’s a lot of cloud around, and bits and pieces of showery rain around.
“Across the East of England, the weather could turn heavy and thundery and there’s a warning out for thunderstorms between 7am to 7pm, because of the unsettled atmosphere.
“We could see an inch or two of rain and several thunderstorms there on Sunday, and that showery scene continues into Monday as well, especially in the north and east of the UK.”
The Met Office said the cooler conditions are set to subside, with much of the country seeing more settled weather moving further into next week.
And temperatures rising could lead to a third heatwave – a period of three or more consecutive days of temperatures higher than a location-based threshold – this summer.
But Mr Petagna said it is difficult to predict the duration of the hot weather.
He said: “It looks like we will meet heatwave criteria again by the end of the week.
“The main uncertainty is how warm it does become and how long the increase in temperature lasts for.
“The trend to warmer weather, particularly across England and Wales, certainly looks pretty good going into the week ahead.
“It will start to feel a bit more humid in the week ahead and also night-time temperatures are going to start to pick up, so it’s going to become more uncomfortable for sleeping.”
