New weather maps suggest that parts of Britain could be hit by a 23C mini-heatwave in a matter of days, with a huge stretch of the country putting their umbrellas away and getting their sunnies back out. The fresh spell of warm weather is set to move in on Friday, May 2, with regions including London baking in highs of 23C by 3pm, according to forecasts from WXCharts. Berkshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Surrey and Sussex will be among the spots most likely to record temperatures in the low twenties, but the whole of the UK is expected to hover above 18C, with southwest Scotland and the southeast around London also climbing to 21C on Friday afternoon.

Maps show a scorching dark red blast of heat spreading across the UK from 12pm on May 2, with the mercury still expected to hover between 17C and 21C for most regions in the early evening. The UK enjoyed a much-welcomed spell of sunshine in early April, with temperatures hitting 24C in west London, before a cool and drizzly front moved in to characterise the Easter holidays.

The Met Office has also suggested there is a chance of "fine and very warm weather" spreading across the country in the next week, but warned that there was a roughly equal chance of "changeable weather with a mixture of rain and drier interludes".

The forecaster also cautioned Brits that UV ray levels are currently at the level they usually are in mid-August, with most of Britain experiencing level 4 rays - indicating a moderate risk of sunburn and damage to unprotected skin.

They also said temperatures could reach the low twenties in southern areas next week, but added that it would be unlikely to meet the heatweave threshold, which requires at least 25C to be recorded or exceeded over a three-day period. In contrast, a mini-heatwave isn't an official meteorological term and is used to refer to shorter stints of hot weather.

This evening and tonight:

Some rainfall throughout the day lessening into the evening, with low cloud spreading across central and eastern regions overnight. Cool temperatures and patchy fog and mist in the west.

Thursday:

Sunny spells in western areas, spreading eastwards during the day. Grey and drizzly in eastern and central regions, with mild conditions elsewhere.

Outlook for Friday to Saturday:

A rainy start to the weekend, with clouds and showers expected on Friday, continuing to spread eastwards on Saturday. A drier and warmer Sunday in the south.