Yellow thunderstorm warning issued as festivalgoers face more wet weather

Festivalgoers shelter from the rain in plastic ponchos as they walk through the muddy site at the Reading Festival (Jeff Moore/PA) PA Wire Jordan Reynolds 1 minute ago A new yellow warning has been issued by the Met Office for heavy showers and thunderstorms, while festivalgoers are set to be hit by more wet weather.

The warning stretches from south-west England and parts of Wales across the Midlands to the east of England, and will be in force from midday until 9pm on Saturday.

It means flooding of a few homes and businesses is likely, trains could be delayed and car journeys could take longer, the forecaster said.

Some areas within the warning could see 15-25mm of rain in an hour, and 30mm in two to three hours, along with hail and lightning.

Meanwhile, people at Reading, Leeds and other live music events are likely to see rain on Saturday as low pressure pushes eastwards, which will be followed by heavy showers.

The cricket is likely to be affected by showers at Lord’s in London , the Met Office added.

Four areas, mainly across the Midlands, are covered by Environment Agency flood alerts, meaning floods are possible.

Festivalgoers shelter from the rain (Jeff Moore/PA) PA Wire It comes after continued hot weather across the UK, which coincided with extremely dry conditions.

The Met Office has previously said the UK is on course for its hottest summer on record after five heatwaves, with temperatures of up to 38.1C recorded in London.

Festivalgoers at Reading Festival were pictured frolicking in the rain during the event on Friday, with many laughing and posing for photos as they remained in good spirits despite their outfits being drenched in mud.

While some were seen flinging mud at each other and playing in puddles, others were hiding beneath their plastic ponchos as they braved the poor weather conditions.

Geese frontman Cameron Winter warned festivalgoers not to “drink the water” on Friday as heavy rainfall seeped through the tent during their set.

Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: “An area of low pressure is currently pushing eastwards across England and Wales and Northern Ireland, pushing rain across the country. That’s going to be followed by heavy showers.

“It will be a different picture for Scotland even though it’s largely cloudy, there will be some brighter spells.