Hold the heating – it will be a warm start to October

After a chilly week, when many of us will have been struggling to resist turning on the heating despite the prohibitive cost of energy at the moment, October will bring some relief as it begins with milder conditions that could save us all a bob or two. The gales that brought rain on Friday will give way to a mild westerly wind, with high pressure building from the south, resulting in warmer, drier and more settled weather. Even the runners in the London Marathon today will stand a decent chance of outpacing any downpours.

Today will definitely be the better day of the weekend, with higher temperatures and not as much rain as yesterday. Southern England and south Wales will touch 64F (18C) in the sunshine, East Anglia and the East 62F (17C), the Midlands, north Wales and the North West 61F (16C), and Scotland and the North East 59F (15C).

Though the sunshine will give way to more cloud as the day wears on, it will be pleasant enough in most parts, though the remnants of a weather system over France and the English Channel may result in some rain in coastal areas of southern England.

Tomorrow, it will get better still, once any early-morning fog has burnt off, as high pressure establishes itself over most of the country. The wind direction will switch from westerly to south-westerly, drawing in warming air from the Azores and pushing up the mercury as high on Tuesday as a balmy – for October – 72F (22C) in southern parts. While our good fortune may fade a bit mid-week with the return of rain, as we approach next weekend the prospects are good. High pressure is likely to be in control once again and bring sunshine and warmth.