THE heatwave has come to an abrupt end as Britain is battered by thunderstorms ahead of England v Scotland.

The Met Office has plastered weather warnings across nearly the whole of England for the next four days.

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On Wednesday evening the rain began to fall, after a day of blue skies and warm and humid temperatures.

Wednesday fell short of becoming the hottest day of the year so far when a high of 29.2C was recorded at Heathrow, short of the 29.7C peak felt in Teddington, Middlesex, on Monday.

The Met Office's yellow warnings mean people could see flooding to homes and businesses, communities becoming "cut off", power cuts and delays to public transport following heavy rainfall.

Strong winds and hail could also pose problems while the Met Office said lightning strikes could cause delays to train and bus services.

Road closures could also follow while motorists have been warned to expect poor driving conditions.

The thunderstorms are the result of a small, low-pressure system moving in from Europe, with warmer surface-level air meeting colder upper air.

Storms began to build across the English Channel on Wednesday afternoon and reached the southern coast of England at around 7pm.

Forecaster Simon Partridge said: "The rain will be pretty heavy with up to 30mm falling in quite a short timeframe.

"It will be a horrible night for many, especially when you're trying to get some sleep, remaining quite hot and humid in London and the South East, at around 17-18C, combined with the damp weather."

It brings to an end days of sunshine in which the public has revelled, with thousands flocking to parks and beaches to soak up the rays.

Thunderstorms are expected to continue until the weekend.

England's much-anticipated Euro 2020 clash with Scotland at Wembley Stadium on Friday evening could be hit with bands of "heavy thundery showers", forecasters say.

Friday will see up to two and a half inches of rain dumped over 12 hours in the worst hit regions.

However, most of Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern parts of Wales are expected to escape the wet weather, with these areas avoiding the yellow weather warnings.

Stephen Dixon, a Met Office spokesman said: "Parts of south-western England could see up to 30-40mm of rain falling in just a few hours on Thursday, with the warning remaining in place until midnight for large swathes of England."

More storms from Friday morning could lead to "intense" showers, he said.

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