Idris and Saoirse storming their way to our shores

Luther star’s name has been chosen to label some extreme weather this winter – but first there’s Ali

The Met Office has released a list of 21 names that will be given to extreme weather events over the next year. The list, which was developed after a public consultation, starts with Storm Ali and extends through to Storm Wyn, with names including Idris and Saoirse in between.

IDRIS ELBA’S name is everywhere – he’s been tipped as the first black James Bond, his debut film as a director has just been released and he deejayed at the royal wedding – but soon his stormy namesake could get the heavens shaking and cost Lloyds billions.

In all likelihood Idris will assail the UK in the form of a biblical gale over the next 12 months. While the British public may not ever hear the actor utter the words “Bond, James Bond,” in anger, the Met Office announced yesterday that we may have to get used to the phrase “Idris, Storm Idris”.

That is because the actor’s first name has appeared on a list of 21 that will be used to label extreme weather events of the approaching winter.

The list was selected by forecasters at the Met Office and Met Éireann, the Irish equivalent, following submissions from members of the public.

The first named storm of the season will be a “male”, Storm Ali, and the second a “female”, Storm Bronagh.

These are from a crop that includes Callum, Deirdre, Kevin, Violet and Tristan. It is the fourth year that the Met Office and Met Éireann have run the Name Our Storms scheme, which aims to raise awareness of severe weather before it hits, and mimics the system used by the US National Hurricane Centre in the Seventies.

The selection of Idris follows a year in which the actor, famous for his roles in The Wire and Luther, directed his first film, became engaged to his girlfriend and stepped into the DJ booth at the after-party of Prince Harry’s wedding to Meghan Markle.

The actor sparked fevered speculation that he had been offered the role of James Bond in August after he posted the cryptic tweet: “My name’s Elba, Idris Elba.” However, he later sought to dampen speculation he would become the first black 007, and is currently second favourite behind Tom Hardy with most bookmakers. The new Met Office list is notable for its size, being more than double the length of that announced a year ago. Last time, there were 10 named events, starting with Storm Aileen on Sept 12, and culminating in Storm Hector on June 13.

The system of naming what some just call “winter gales” has been controversial, particularly when weather events not thought to be severe were named and vice versa.

But Derrick Ryall, head of public weather services at the Met Office, said: “Naming storms has been proved to raise awareness of severe weather in the UK, providing a consistent message to the public and crucially prompting people to take action to prevent harm to themselves or to their property.” In a poll, 80 per cent of people thought giving storms a name was useful in making them aware the severe weather may have more impact than normal, while 63 per cent believed it was useful in letting them know to take action.

Evelyn Cusack, of Met Éireann, said: “The last 12 months have seen some extreme weather around the globe as well as here at home. While it is too early to say whether the coming winter will be a stormy one or a quiet one, we are prepared with a whole new set of 21 names for whatever nature may throw at us.

“As before, Met Éireann forecasters will work in close cooperation with our colleagues from the Met Office.”