A sunshine weekend ... then comes the storm

WARM coats and Christmas decorations may be in the shops – but the sun still has one last hurrah in store before winter really sets in.

The country is set to enjoy a mini-heatwave this weekend, with temperatures reaching as high as 24C (75F) in some regions.

However, after the calm comes the storm – as soon after a hurricane is predicted to lash the country. Hurricane Ophelia, which is sweeping its way towards Britain from the Azores, could bring 50mph gales and driving rain.

The winds will arrive after a warm and sunny weekend. London could be almost 10C (50F) hotter than the average maximum temperature for October, which is about 15.3C (59.5F).

And while the North West will have some wet and windy conditions today, with patches of rain continuing to Saturday, Sunday is forecast to be dry and fine. But the balmy weather will not last, with Ophelia set to hit on Monday – although by the time it reaches the UK, it will not be strong enough to be categorised as a hurricane.

Met Office spokesman Graham Madge said: ‘On Monday we are expecting the arrival of Hurricane Ophelia, which is currently a category one storm.

‘The weather system will make its way north, bringing some windy conditions with it, though we don’t really have the sea temperatures to sustain real hurricane conditions.’

The storm’s arrival in the UK coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Great Storm of 1987, which hit southern England on the night of October 15-16. It claimed 18 lives as well as causing around £1billion worth of damage.