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03/07/2003
Yes, it is July. Yes, it is mid-summer. However, it is the British Isles and where would we be without our diverse, if not always seasonal, array of weather?
The day certainly didn't measure up to the idyllic picture of a summer's day that one might anticipate for early July. There were large amounts of cloud, outbreaks of rain, and the grey weather certainly held back temperatures too - not even making the mid-teens for many parts of England and Wales by midday!
The days weather was driven by low pressure - the same low that has produced unsettled conditions for much of the week. The low centre may well have moved to Scandinavia, but the system still continued to feed its moist air and instability over the British Isles.
Low cloud, mist and outbreaks of drizzle fed into northern Scotland, northern Ireland and north Wales on north or northwesterly winds. The thickest of the cloud was to be found in coastal areas and across high ground. Temperatures overnight fell as low as 4C (39F) in Tulloch Bridge in Highland. The murky weather certainly saw temperatures struggling by day too - Fair Isle (between Orkney and Shetland) reached only a high of 13C (55F) through the day.
In sharp contrast, for central and southern Scotland, with the benefit of shelter, there were good cloud breaks allowing long spells of sunshine. Glasgow saw the best of these, recording a total of 14.9 hours sunshine. The bright weather here also helped to push temperatures up - Glasgow was also the warmest place in the country with a high of 24C (75F).
However, further south and we were back with cloudier conditions across England and Wales. Outbreaks of rain affected many parts of central and eastern England during the morning and early afternoon. The rain was heavy for some through the morning rush hour - the Met Office issued a motoring warning for tricky driving conditions for Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire due to surface water and spray.
The rain gradually moved southeastwards during the afternoon, leaving a drier end to the day for many, but some showers did develop behind it - the Pennines seeing some of the better formed clusters. With plenty of cloud and rain, temperatures certainly struggled as noted above - by midday temperatures in Lincolnshire had barely reached 13 or 14C, very depressed for the start of July!
London may not have seen any of the heavy rain but the outbreaks that did arrive were certainly disruptive - the start of the day's play at Wimbledon was delayed by two and a half hours. Further showers during the afternoon saw the covers being pulled on once again.
(The wettest place in the UK in the 24 hours ending 1800GMT on the 3rd was Bournemouth in Dorset. This was as a result of heavy thundery showers which developed during the previous evening and is not detailed above.)
Weather Reviews from the last five days
02/07/2003
01/07/2003
30/06/2003
29/06/2003
28/06/2003
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