UK to be enveloped in a 1,000 mile-wide 'heat bubble' from France bringing a week of sunshine and temperatures of 18C (64F)
The UK is set to be enveloped in a 1,000 mile-wide 'heat bubble' bringing in a week of sunshine and temperatures of 18C (64F).
The warmer days will mark the hottest of the year so far - with higher temperatures in the UK than in the Mediterranean.
Blue skies will delight millions after months of winter freezes and floods across the country.
Highs of 16C are due by Wednesday, reaching up to 18C from Thursday into the weekend.
The North is set to receive temperatures of 16C - hotter than 15C Palermo in Italy.
Parts of the UK are already enjoying sunset-to-sunrise cloudless skies just weeks after the gloomiest weather for decades saw zero minutes of sunshine for a week in London.
However, gusts of winds and showers are also on their way and may affect many parts of the UK towards the very end of the week.
Saturday was the first day of meteorological spring, which covers the months of March, April and May.
Last year’s meteorological spring was the warmest on record, when the average mean temperature for the UK was 9.37C.
The outbreak of sunny weather over the weekend meant bumble bees were seen for the first time this year at Forde Abbey in Dorset.
But overnight the weather remained chilly, with a blanket of frost ensuring that temperatures dropped to around -5C in Powys, Wales, in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Weather Outlook forecaster Brian Gaze said: 'After a dreary February, spring has finally arrived with plenty of sunshine, temperatures rising steadily and up to 18C possible from Thursday.'
Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna said: 'There'll be fabulous sunshine.'
A Met Office forecaster said: 'Fine, settled weather is on the way in southern areas, although further north will have more cloud.'
BBC Weather said: 'Temperatures will rise well above average from midweek, with a southerly airflow, sunny spells and spring-like temperatures.
'But changeable conditions in the North-West are expected to spread from the weekend.'
Ellie Glaisyer, Met Office forecaster, said: ‘There will be plenty of clear spells with some mist and fog across the very far southeast into the start of Monday and it’s likely to be turning really quite chilly here too with temperatures as low as -4C or -5C in some rural spots.
‘But once any mist and fog has cleared across the southeast it will be another pleasant day here with plenty of blue skies on offer with temperatures similar to what we saw on Sunday with highs of perhaps 12C at best.
‘Plenty of sunshine is on the way through Tuesday and Wednesday.’
The Met Office said last week that the beginning of March would be ‘actually more lamb-like than lion-like’ - a nod to the proverb ‘in like a lion, out like a lamb’ - with the warm weather rather than colder weather marking the start of the month.
The forecaster also described temperatures for this time of year as ‘bang-on average’, despite unusually frosty nights over the last few days.
The astronomical spring, which refers to the position of Earth’s orbit in relation to the Sun, begins on March 20.
