Fans make the most of Reading and Leeds festivals as bad weather looms

Enjoy it while you can! Fans make the most of Reading and Leeds festivals as gloomy weather expert warns they face thunder, lightning and rain over the weekend

• Yellow weather warning in effect for the North East as thunderstorms loom
• Reading peppered with rainfall today while stormy weather to come in Leeds

Music lovers enjoying Reading and Leeds Festival this weekend have been told to make the most of the good weather while they can – as stormy conditions and a yellow weather warning loom.

Saturday headliners at Reading include The Killers and The 1975 while Leeds crowds are set to enjoy Foals and Sam Fender – but forecasters at the Met Office have warned thousands of festival-goers to expect to get to wet.

Rain was expected to hit Berkshire this afternoon but Yorkshire will get the worst of the conditions amid a yellow thunderstorm warning that took effect at 11am and runs until 8pm.

The yellow weather warning covers the north-east of England from Alnwick, north of Newcastle, down to Skegness, and as far west as Huddersfield, Leeds and Bradford. 

Temperatures across the country are sitting in the high teens and low twenties – with the highest temperature expected to be around 21C in the south-east.

READING: Fans arriving at Reading train station ahead of the festival’s second day on Saturday. The Met Office warned of rain at lunchtime and during the afternoon

LEEDS: Day two of the Leeds Festival began with bright sunshine – but a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms is in effect and could see heavy downpours dampen spirits

LEEDS: Music fans arrive at Leeds Festival on Saturday. Among the headliners today are Sam Fender and alternative rock band Foals 

A yellow weather warning of thunderstorms is in effect for the North East – with Leeds Festival guests warned to expect rain before the day is out

READ MORE: No getting away from the jams! Traffic forms tailbacks on Britain’s motorways with 14million journeys expected this August Bank holiday weekend

Jonathan Vautrey, meteorologist at the Met Office, said: ‘There’s a reasonable chance that some showers will pass over Leeds and Reading over the course of the day.

‘Particularly for Leeds, they are within the yellow warning area that we currently have out just because winds are going to be lightest across that north-eastern area of England today.

‘That will mean those showers are slower moving at times, so rainfall is likely to accumulate in specific locations a bit more.’

The yellow weather warning advises of ‘slow-moving heavy showers and thunderstorms’, as well as the potential for flooding and disruption on the roads and railways. 

Mr Vautrey added that both Leeds and Reading ‘do have the potential for seeing some lightning and thunder’ over the course of Saturday, but rainfall would be the main issue.

Later tonight, the rain will dissipate, giving way to mostly pleasant conditions except for the western edges of Great Britain, which could see some showers overnight.

Those showers, Mr Vautrey added, could spread east over the course of Sunday – with festival goers once more in the firing line.

There will be a reduced chance of lightning in Leeds on Sunday, but sharp, heavy downpours remain likely and could merge into longer spells of rain.

Reading will see ‘a good number of sunny spells’ on Sunday morning, but showers will move over from the West before easing off in the evening.

In London, those enjoying Notting Hill Carnival on Sunday have been told to be aware of sporadic heavy showers. 

Rain is expected on Sunday at around lunchtime, just as festivities are getting under way in the capital.

LEEDS: Day two of Leeds Festival getting underway on Saturday, as fans flock to get the best spots to enjoy the likes of Wet Leg, Frank Turner and Loyle Carner

READING: Fans arriving at Reading railway station ahead of Saturday. Arlo Parks, Nothing But Thieves and Holly Humberstone are among the acts getting top billing

WHITLEY BAY: Huge clouds loom over a lighthouse in North Tyneside – where a yellow weather warning for thunderstorms is in effect until 8pm

BOURNEMOUTH: Brighter conditions on the Dorset coast have seen beachgoers making the most of the bank holiday weekend

For the rest of Saturday in London, Mr Vautrey said: ‘It’s stayed relatively dry so far [in Notting Hill], but we are now just starting to see those showers begin to bubble up.

‘There’s still going to be sunny spells in between these showers, so it’s not going to be a complete washout all day in London both today and tomorrow.’

Bank Holiday Monday, meanwhile, is expected to begin with an east-moving band of cloud and rain – before turning ‘drier and brighter’ as the day goes on.

Temperatures will be cooler in the morning before hitting a high of 21C in London mid-afternoon.

Festival fans have already had their mettle tested this weekend amid ongoing rail strikes – and complaints of long queues to get in with their camping gear.

Action by thousands of staff aligned with the RMT union has seen timetables reduced across England, with journeys into Scotland and Wales also affected, amid a dispute over pay and the plan to close hundreds of ticket offices at stations.

RMT members will also walk out on Saturday, September 2 and ASLEF members will strike on Friday, September 1 followed by an overtime ban the next day.

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