Bright and chilly start before cloud, rain and strengthening winds arrive from the west
A chilly but largely sunny start across the North West, with just some low cloud and hill fog on the Cumbrian fells and Pennine tops. Cloud thickens from the Irish Sea through the late morning and afternoon, with a few spots of light rain or drizzle on western coasts, while inland areas stay mainly dry but increasingly grey. Highs of 12C to 14C in lowland areas, 8C to 10C on the hills.
Rain spreads in from the west this evening, reaching Cumbria and the Lancashire coast first and covering the whole region by around 7pm. It turns heavy tonight, particularly across the Lake District, west Cumbria, Morecambe Bay and the Fylde late in the evening, with the heavier rain moving into central Lancashire, the Pennines and Greater Manchester after midnight. Much milder than last night, with towns holding at 9C to 12C.
Winds are light this morning with gusts of 10mph to 20mph, but a freshening southerly brings gusts of 30mph to 40mph to the Cumbrian coast and fells and 25mph to 35mph on the Lancashire coast this evening. Inland areas see 20mph to 30mph, with the more sheltered east around 15mph to 25mph.
