Hot weekend brings sun and thunderstorms

According to forecaster Météo France, temperatures are set to rise over the next 48 hours, thanks to a Portuguese weather front that is pushing hot air from northern Africa.

Sun and high temperatures are expected today (Friday May 25) and Saturday (May 26), including peaks of 28°C in Paris, 29°C in Bordeaux, and 31°C in Clermont-Ferrand.

Strasbourg, Lyon, Grenoble and Metz are also expected to see temperatures in the 30°Cs.

Around 28°C-29°C is expected across the southern regions.

This represents a spike of around 6°C higher than the seasonal average, Météo France said, although it added that a sudden rise in temperatures at this time of year “is not unusual”.

Despite the bright sunshine in some areas, the west and south-west of the country may see some thunderstorms tempering their blue skies over the weekend as the hot weather “breaks”.

More storms are expected to arrive across the country by Sunday (May 27) and Monday (May 28), bringing a cooling effect overall.