A look ahead to the long weekend weather - Good Friday first.
The first bank holiday of the Easter weekend and start of the school holidays for some. Easter is quite early this year so no-one should be expecting 'warmest ever Easter headlines' but it has been the potential cold getting all the attention.
Widespread snow is not expected but it will feel cold over Easter. There will be a fair amount of rain and some snow over northern hills and maybe to lower levels for parts of Scotland. The easterly flow will be reaching the UK by Friday, with a real chill for the northeastern half of Scotland
Friday 30th
A cool start with temperatures around zero for north Wales, Northern Ireland, Scotland and northern England. Adding on the brisk east wind it will feel cold. Low pressure will be lurking away to the south and will bring bands of rain over England and Wales. It's a bit hard at the moment to locate where will get a downpour and when. Weather apps maybe showing a lot of rain with a sequence of shower symbols throughout the day. Don't follow their timings. There will be clusters of heavy showers with the risk of hail and thunder but also bright, fine weather inbetween. In any sunshine , out of the cold wind it will seem okay, but as soon as you step into the breeze or the shade you'll need your coat pulled around you.
For Scotland and Northern IReland, there will be more fair, bright weather with interruptions from scattered showers. We will have to watch the decaying front, see how far north it is as this will affect how many showers hit Northern Ireland. In the morning there will be some hill snow from the frontal band over northern England and its a risk for the hills of Northern Ireland depending on the band's location .
North east Scotland will have the coldest air on Friday with NE Britain seeing the chilliest conditions through Easter weekend. Any showers will be a mixture of rain and sleet, soft hail and hill snow. Conditions won't be very nice in the mountains with a significant wind chill, and the blustery wintry showers.
Further SW temperatures could reach into double figures, so away from the showery rain, it won't be too bad but not the best weather for a day off work or school.
If you are camping this weekend, Friday night looks cold for northern Britain and Northern Ireland with temperatures below freezing inland. Still a cold east wind and the chance of wintry showers coming into NE Brittain. Frontal rain will affect parts of SE England.
