Britain will be drenched by TWO inches of rain

Brollies up! It’s a miserable bank holiday washout: Britain will be drenched by TWO inches of rain, battered by 50mph gales and even SNOW – with flood and wind warnings issued for South

• Comes as freezing temperatures hit the UK over the weekend and freak hail storm struck the Isle of Wight 
• Heavy rainfall over the weekend didn’t stop punters from sitting outside under umbrellas in Devon and Oxford
• Temperatures will remain low for this time of years with lows of -4C, lower than temperatures in Russia  

Britain’s first bank holiday since lockdown rules eased is set to be a washout as the country is drenched by two inches of rain and battered by 50mph gales. 

The Met Office has also issued wind and flood warnings for the south of the country, and warned that parts of northern England could even be hit by snow. 

Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna said: ‘There’s quite a deep area of low pressure coming in from the West on Monday. It’s pretty windy with some gales in exposed areas in the West’s coast and hills. 

‘Obviously with lockdown restrictions coming down now there could be more people out and about so the impact could be higher than normal but certainly a very wet and windy day moving in from the West on Monday.’ 

A miserable end to the Bank Holiday weekend will come as rain will set in over Northern Ireland and spread across the entirety of the UK by this afternoon. 

The Met Office has predicted the rain will become heavier throughout the day and some snow will be seen on Scottish mountains. 

Coastal gales are forecast for the south and western areas of the country but the rain should start to clear by the evening.   

And the mercury isn’t set to rise any time soon as tomorrow is set to be an unsettled and chilly day with a fair amount of cloud and showers or longer spells of rain. 

The rest of the week will stay much the same with wintry showers and rain across the country and widespread overnight frosts.  

Pictured: Sunrise by the Ribblehead viaduct in Cumbria on Bank Holiday Monday before the forecast rain arrives

A group of hardy pub goers enjoy an outdoor pint in the pouring rain outside The Cranberry Farm pub, in Exeter, Devon

Freezing temperatures over the Bank Holiday weekend have forced winemakers to burn huge paraffin candles by their vineyards to stop grapes from icing over

Vitaculturists at The Grange Hampshire vineyard lit their candles, known as bougies, in the early hours of yesterday morning during a period of frost

An extraordinary freak hail storm hit the Isle of Wight and covered the fields and streets in Newchurch turning the landscape into a winter wonderland

Jamie Russell, of the Isle of Wight Met Service, said: ‘It was amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I was on the southern side of a big rapeseed field near Shanklin when I noticed something slightly unusual happening in the general direction of Newchurch and headed over there’

Families and visitors wearing waterproof jackets and carrying umbrellas brave the rain and flock to the at the seaside resort of Lyme Regis in Dorset

Visitors to Lyme Regis hold umbrellas as they flock to the beach 

The drizzly end to the bank holiday weekend comes after temperatures plummeted yesterday as showers swept across UK, with a freak hail storm in the Isle of Wight leaving fields looking like a winter wonderland.

But the heavy rainfall over the weekend didn’t seem to stop punters desperate to get back to the pubs and bars as people were pictured huddled around outdoor tables clutching on to umbrellas while they enjoyed their tipples.

A group of hardy pub goers were spotted an outdoor pint in the pouring rain outside The Cranberry Farm pub, in Exeter, Devon. 

And others were seen holding blankets over their heads while sitting outside at a bar in Wallingford, Oxfordshire. 

Temperatures will remain low for this time of year with lows of -4C, lower than the temperature in Russia, and forecasts of torrential rain and storms to start today.  

Freezing temperatures forced winemakers to burn huge paraffin candles by their vineyards to stop grapes from icing over. 

Pictured: A freak hailstorm has left the Newchurch area of the Isle of Wight looking like it is in the depths of winter 

Hail froze to the roads and grass, looking like snow was covering the Isle of Wight this weekend

Vitaculturists at The Grange Hampshire vineyard lit their candles, known as bougies, in the early hours of yesterday morning during a period of frost. 

A team of 10 local lighters were given an emergency alert at 2am in the morning and it took them about an hour and a half to light the 450 candles. 

Once the sun comes up and the temperature reaches above freezing a different team will come and extinguish the candles.   

And hail battered the Isle of Wight on Saturday leaving the Newchurch area looking like it was in the depths of winter and covered in snow.  

Jamie Russell, of the Isle of Wight Met Service, said: ‘It was amazing. I couldn’t believe it. I was on the southern side of a big rapeseed field near Shanklin when I noticed something slightly unusual happening in the general direction of Newchurch and headed over there.’

And across the rest of the country punters were forced to huddle under blankets and coats while dining with friends and family outside amid the torrential rain yesterday. 

In Wallingford, Oxfordshire, diners braved the conditions despite the rain lashing their umbrellas during a very wet al fresco lunch.   

Zam Baring, CEO, The Grange Hampshire Wine said: ‘Frosty nights are all about horrible judgement calls. How cold is it going to be getting two or three hours’ time? How much damage will be done to the buds if we don’t light the candles? 

‘And, if we do light the candles tonight, will we have enough left for what is coming down the line tomorrow night, the night after or even next week? It is undeniably a beautiful sight, but it’s a terrible sight too!

‘There were very bad frosts last year in 2020 during the second week of May and, despite working hard to counteract the cold, The Grange Hampshire suffered a more than 60 per cent reduction in yield over the previous year. We use around 1,500 candles each year.’   

Punters huddled under blankets and coats in the wet weather with diners still forced to remain outside due to Covid restrictions

The weather proved no obstacle to some who sat outside Britain’s pubs and restaurants on Saturday amid the pouring rain

Diners in the Oxfordshire town of Wallingford brave the pouring rain for the chance to be together and to eat outdoors on Saturday

The cold temperatures follow the coldest April on record with the lowest average minimum temperatures for April in the UK since 1922.  

The yellow weather warnings will see some delays to road, rail air and ferry transport. The Met Office has said that some bus and train services will probably be affected. 

And damage to outdoor temporary structures is possible with some tree branches down too.   

It’s likely that some coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities will be affected by spray and/or large waves. 

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