As day-to-day weather events during lengthy quieter spells at this time of year can often be similar, it can become increasingly difficult for forecasters to avoid repetition. With high pressure likely to dominate well into November, we'll be looking for alternative descriptions and will see the return of a meteorological term often forgotten in the spring and summer months: 'anticyclonic gloom'.
This expression often describes persistently dull weather with poor visibility during the late autumn and winter months. This includes low cloud, mist or fog, which is often accompanied by mostly light rain or drizzle and can be very depressing, as sufferers of SAD will be well aware. For the trick-or-treaters this Halloween evening, however, it'll create perfectly spooky conditions.
Conditions vary across regions, with the aftermath of the DANA weather system that caused devastating floods across eastern and southern Spain and the Balearic Islands now coming to the fore. Closer to home, we're experiencing the opposite, as the quiet, mainly dry anticyclonic spell continues.
Overnight conditions remain largely unchanged, with the only exception being the far North of Scotland. Here, a more noticeable westerly wind will bring some showers, with much colder conditions moving into the Northern Isles before morning.
Friday brings a new month but similar conditions, typical of November. For most of England and Wales, it'll be another dull, misty start with areas of low cloud and fog, especially over coasts and hills. A few places will start bright, with skies lifting sufficiently through the day to allow sunshine here and there. Favoured spots will be in the East to the lee of the Pennines and across parts of the Midlands and South.
Northern Ireland and southern Scotland will experience similar conditions, while a weak cold front brings clearer conditions to the North, albeit with a few showers mostly across the Northern Isles and towards Caithness. Here it'll be colder in a north-westerly breeze with temperatures reaching no higher than 6 to 8°C, but elsewhere a milder 12 to 15°C will be nearer the mark in light winds.
After dark, Scotland, particularly the North, should see the clearest skies, and with light winds, mist, patchy fog and a slight frost could develop as temperatures fall to between -2 and +2°C. Elsewhere it'll stay milder, with the southern half of England and Wales probably seeing the best of any clear spells. It'll be misty again with patchy fog, and although mainly dry, Northern Ireland and parts of northern England may see low cloud and mist giving drizzle here and there. Lowest temperatures here 5 to 9°C.
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