Long to rain on us? King Charles’s coronation day will be the warmest on record, with temperatures in London reaching 20C – but there could be downpours like at his late mother’s ceremony in 1953
- London is set for showers on Saturday with possible highs of 20C
Royal fans along the Mall on the day of the coronation may need to bring umbrellas – as the Met Office warns that light rain could fall on the procession.
Charles’s coronation day will be the warmest on record, according to the Met Office, with temperatures in London set to reach 20°C during sunny breaks in widespread cloud cover.
Elsewhere in Britain, the mercury will only reach the mid to high teens.
According to Met Office analysis of coronations since Edward VII in 1902, the current warmest on record was that of George V on 22 June 1911, when the temperature reached 17C. At the coronation of the late Queen Elizabeth II on 2 June 1953, the maximum temperature was only 11.8°C.
Coronations in the 20th century were also generally uneventful, with no sunshine on the coronations of George V or George VI and only 1.2 hours when Queen Elizabeth was crowned.
The Met Office has no previous records, as meteorology is a relatively new science and records do not go back to coronations in the 19th century and before.
Bad weather is unlikely to dampen the mood for King Charles’s coronation, but it will bring to mind the late Queen Elizabeth II’s 1953 ceremony (Photo: A nighttime rehearsal in central London for the coronation of King Charles III)
The Met Office has forecast showers with sunny spells for London on the day of King Charles’ Coronation
The uncertain forecast for Coronation Day and the bank holiday follows stable but mostly cloudy weather into the middle of the week, which was previously predicted to last into the weekend.
Charles’ grandfather George VI had a washout for his coronation in 1937, with 8.2 mm of rain.
A daily weather report from 2 June 1953 shows that the weather on the late Queen’s Coronation Day was similar to the forecast for this Saturday.
The report reads: ‘Throughout the afternoon, cloudy and wet weather continued in the eastern districts, continuing well into the evening. The western areas continued to enjoy the best weather with many places having a dry day with good sunny spells.
“There was moderate to fresh northerly or northeasterly airflow over the entire country. It was a cold day for early June, especially along the east coast and pretty miserable here too given all the clouds and rain.’
The coronation of HM Queen Elizabeth II saw temperature spikes of just 11.8°C on 2 June 1953, with some light rain during the day
King Charles’s grandfather, King George VI, had a washout for his coronation in 1937, with 8.2mm of rain recorded on that day
Steven Keates, Met Office deputy chief forecaster, said: ‘Saturday we will see showers forming from late morning in some central, eastern and northern areas, but also with some sunny spells throughout the day.
At this stage it looks like London can avoid showers in the morning before some develop during the afternoon.
Heavier rain is expected to move into the south west of the UK and parts of Northern Ireland will experience heavy showers.
“Winds will remain weak from the far north, where gusts are starting to die down. The warmest temperatures, of 20C, are possible in London in any sunshine, with mid to high teens possible elsewhere.’
The Met Office predicts that the remainder of the bank holiday weekend will continue to be showery.
It said: ‘With celebrations continuing over the Bank Holiday, areas of rain will break into severe, possible thunderstorms for many parts of England and Wales on Sunday. The driest and clearest weather looks set for parts of Northern Ireland and northern Scotland.
“Monday is more uncertain at this stage and the current outlook remains uncertain.” Dryer and clearer weather is expected next week.