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.
ADVERTISEMENT
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.
ADVERTISEMENT
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.”
ADVERTISEMENT
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.
Work finally begins on site of UK’s first majority LGBTQ+ housing scheme in Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Work has finally got underway on the start of the UK’s first majority LGBTQ+ housing scheme here in Manchester.
The exciting new £37 million flagship development – which is being built on the site of the former Spire Hospital on Russell Road, in the Whalley Range area of Manchester – will be comprised of 80 one and two-bedroom apartments for older people over the age of 55 for social rent, alongside an additional 40 affordable shared ownership apartments.
Plans for the scheme have been co-produced in partnership with the Russell Road Community Steering Group, Manchester City Council, and the LGBT Foundation.
Delivered in partnership with contractors Rowlinson, and funded through Great Places, the Homes England Strategic Partnership, GMCA Brownfield Housing Fund, and Manchester City Council, the high-quality and sustainable building will offer a ‘safe and welcome feel’ with an ‘inviting presence’.
While the goal is to create an inclusive space, the scheme has also been designed to respect the surrounding conservation area.
On top of this, the low carbon scheme will also feature shared communal facilities including lounges, treatment rooms, and landscaped gardens.
The Council says the new scheme is part of its ambitious target to deliver at least 36,000 new homes across the city region by 2032 – at least 10,000, of which, will be social rent, Council, or considered ‘genuinely affordable’ housing.
It comes after more than 800 ‘Extra Care’ homes have been built in Manchester in recent years, and are another 1,000 are in the pipeline – to meet the demand for older people in the city.
A CGI of the newly-approved LGBTQ+ Extra Care housing scheme development in Whalley Range / Credit: Manchester City Council
“This is a real milestone moment for this development,” commented Cllr Gavin White, who is the Executive Member for Housing and Development at Manchester City Council.
“The Council has believed in the positive impact an LGBTQ+ majority housing development could have for this community for many years, and to celebrate the social rent homes officially starting on site is a great moment for the city.
“Working with the LGBT Foundation, we know that older LGBTQ+ people worry about being able to access appropriate and inclusive housing later in life. Although we hope all older person’s accommodation is welcoming to everyone, this scheme will provide safe, secure and affordable housing for LGBTQ+ people to live with dignity.
“We look forward to the completion of these homes that will complement and enhance this part of Whalley Range, and be an important part of this community.”
The project is scheduled to be completed in Summer 2027.
Parklife shares statement after festival’s brand-new stage closed down before headliners
Daisy Jackson
Parklife has released a full statement after the festival was forced to close its newest stage, and cancel two headline performances.
The huge Heaton Park festival had been running smoothly all weekend, with blistering performances from 50 Cent, Pawsa, Jorja Smith and plenty more.
But on Sunday, local lad and rising star DJ Josh Baker took to the brand-new Matinee stage to enormous crowds.
Although Parklife installed a queue system to manage numbers inside the enclosed festival stage, the crowds outside became very large, very quickly, and the decision was made to shut the stage down for everyone’s safety.
Several people have shared videos on TikTok, like the one below, that show the scenes around the Matinee stage and audiences being told the area would need to be evacuated.
The stage was shut down for the remainder of the evening, meaning a headline performance from Chris Stussy was also cancelled.
Parklife has said this decision was taken to ‘remove the risk of any potential incidents’ and to prioritise the safety of festival attendees.
Josh Baker told fans: “I deeply apologise. I can’t really put into words what today was going to mean to me.”
Chris Stussy said in a statement on his Instagram: “Really gutted I’m unable to perform at Parklife tonight, flew straight from Barcelona to play a 3 hours closing set but due to safety reasons and the stage being over crowded, the organisation decided to shut the stage down as it may have caused unsafe situations for those who were there.
“Despite being disappointed, safety comes first and we will make this right very soon.”
Parklife hasn’t publicly addressed the incident but has shared this statement: “As a result of crowd movement at the Matinee Stage and on the advice of our safety team to remove the risk of any potential incidents, Parklife made the decision to close the stage for the remainder of the final day of the festival.
“Unfortunately it has been impossible to relocate Josh Baker’s and Chris Stussy’s performances to a new stage.
“Our teams worked quickly and diligently to address the situation and the safety of our festival attendees is always our utmost priority.”
Emily Sergeant -
11th June 2025 
