Temperatures to hit 20C this weekend with sunshine and scattered showers

Shandon steeple and the North Cathedral amongst the rooftops of the northside of Cork City in bright spring sunshine. Picture: Larry Cummins

Parts of the country are set to hit 20C this weekend, with warm weather, sunny spells and largely dry conditions.

While there will be plenty of bright weather, heavy showers and possible thunderstorms are expected in the west and southwest on Friday.

Thursday began dry with plenty of sunshine, with daytime highs between 13C and 18C, warmest in the west.

Similar conditions will continue into the night, with lows of 2C to 7C expected, although it will stay milder in the southwest.

Friday will start dry and sunny, but clouds will build later in the southwest, bringing scattered showers, some of which may turn heavy or thundery. Highs of 15C to 20C are expected, again warmest in the west.

The evening will be mostly dry and clear, though cloud will increase in the southwest and possibly the west, with further showers and a risk of thunderstorms. Temperatures will fall to around 2C overnight.

Saturday will bring a mix of cloud and sunny spells, with the best conditions in the north and east. Elsewhere, there will be heavy or thundery showers, though these will become more isolated by evening. Temperatures will range between 14C and 19C.

Saturday night will be a mix of cloud, clear spells and mostly dry weather, with just a few isolated showers. Lows of 5C to 9C are expected.

Sunday will be largely dry with some showers. Sunny spells early in the day will give way to more cloud at times, bringing scattered showers. Highs of 14C to 18C are forecast.

Looking ahead to next week, Monday remains somewhat uncertain, but Met Éireann said it should be another mostly dry day with spells of sunshine and isolated showers, with highs of 15C to 19C.

"Current indications suggest high pressure will continue to dominate through midweek with largely dry conditions and with temperatures widely reaching the mid to high teens," Met Éireann added.