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Friday starts with a very mixed picture across the UK. Southern counties and Scotland are mainly dry but a band of rain is affecting areas in between. The rain becomes lighter from the west this morning, but in the afternoon some heavier bursts spread across Northern Ireland and into western Britain. Southern England and Scotland have a dry and bright day, but in the south it will be very windy.

Temperatures range from a 5C (41F) in the far north to a very mild 12C (54F) in the south. See the rain radar for the latest view.

Meteo France Arpege, precipitation, 15:00 GMT Fri 21st December

Tonight showery outbreaks of rain spread eastwards across much of the country. Later on drier periods develop and showers becoming increasingly restricted to the west.

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Christmas 2018 countdown

Winter 2018/19 forecast [Issued 01/12/2018]

Buzz

Tomorrow northern and western areas have showers but elsewhere there will be a good deal of dry weather. A fair amount of sunshine is likely in central and northern regions but the south probably has more cloud. Temperatures stay close to the December average in the north but the south has another mild day.

GFS, temperatures, 15:00 GMT Sat 22nd December

During Sunday outbreaks of rain push eastwards across much of the UK but Scotland should remain dry. It will be very mild again in southern and central counties.

Drier for Christmas week

Next week starts off on a mixed note. There is a risk of outbreaks of rain in southern and central counties on Christmas Eve but the north probably misses them.

By Christmas Day high pressure builds from the south and starts to influence the UK's weather. Its exact positioning will determine temperatures but computer models are currently favouring a mild pattern. If the high pressure builds slightly farther northwards the outcome would be colder and frostier conditions but the latest data suggests a growing chance of unseasonably mild conditions for much of Christmas week.

GFS, pressure and precipitation, 15:00 GMT Mon 24th December

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Unsettled conditions are early in the period. Next week pressure builds and it turns drier. View latest GEFS.