Summer 2011 so far OverviewWe’re now halfway through the summer, and although the firsthalf hasn’t been great, it’s hasn’t been too bad in places either. Late Junebrought the highest temperatures for 5 years, with 33C (91F) being recorded inBritain. In many ways this is turning out to be a text book British summer witha few fine days, followed by a few days with showers or longer spells of rain. We were often spoilt during the summers in the 1990s and 2000s, as they brought an usual number of heatwaves to our shores. The type of weather pattern we're experiencing this summer is caused by low pressuresystems to our north west, and high pressure over the Azores, taking it in turnsto influence our weather. The driest and warmest weather tends to be in thesouth, with Scotland, Ireland and the North West getting the coolest andwettest conditions. Prospects for the rest of summer 2011I’m expecting the mixed summer weather to continue during the next few weeks,with further showers or longer spells of rain at times, but also some warmerand drier spells when temperatures may reach about 27C (81F) in the south, andperhaps 24C (75F) in Scotland and Ireland. So don't be surprised to get a mix of washout days with cloudbursts bringing torrential rain, and fine and dry days with pleasantly warm sunshine. During summers like this my advice would be if you are planning a barbecue then remember where you've left your umbrella as it really looks like a mixed bag. The best chance of another very warmspell to me looks to be during the second half of August with temperaturespossibly rising to 28C (82F) in the south. I’m optimistic about the prospectsfor this coinciding with late summer bank holiday weekend. Along with the return of much more typical Britishsummers during recent years, we’ve also seen colder winters returning, and I’d notbe at all surprised if heavy snow affects much of Britain again during thecoming winter. Issued 9th July 2011Brian GazeTheWeatherOutlook//www.theweatheroutlook.com