Reefseeker

Indeed, Hampshire and Dorset skies all looked hopeful this afternoon.

Awww, yes, it would be a super-small Netweather SE thread meed-up:) I was doing the walk from there to Battersea Power Station; the change in that whole area is incredible.

Heavy skies around Vauxhall.

It seems to have intensified right over the top of us in the past half an hour. Roads between Surbiton and Ewell were already flooded and we've returned to a garden path with a water level that sloshed over our shoes. Awww, bless him!

Absolutely torrential rain falling now and bright lightning across the sky, which sounds like it has just been split in two by thunder!

I just put on the garden light and the rain has just got heavier here. I'm certainly hopeful - my attic windows look S/SW, so fingers crossed for a good light show:) Good luck to all of us who want a fab storm out of this; it's the most excited I've seen the threads for storms in this area for ages! Edit: Looked out the attic window and I could see flashes to the south west. In this area, it's hard to know if rumbles overhead are planes or thunder! Aaaannnd a long rumble of thunder just crossed the sky.

Here in Surbiton it's just been bits and pieces, nothing coming to much, with more energy as things move north east. I'm hopeful the stuff to the south/south west will bring us something.

I hope so, the bits and pieces over us so far seem to get much more energy after they head north east!

A silly question, but may I ask how the spider chuckers get rid of the spiders? Do you pick them up with your hands, or in a glass? I am very much afraid of spiders, which is not something I'm happy about as an animal lover, so have to ask others to get rid of them; and out of all of us in the household, it's usually me that has one on a shoe or my arm, in a bag, in the wardrobe on my clothes, on the wall next to me... it's like they know!

Awww, so sorry to hear they are poorly, sounds like you have done all the right stuff to get them on the mend; we've had Frenchies for a decade and heat is definitely not their thing. Here in Bournemouth the rain is persistent and getting heavier, but, as others have noted, the sky looks as if it's attempting to clear.

In Bournemouth for the weekend. Yesterday was glorious with packed beaches well into the evening. This morning the rain has arrived from France. I wonder if we'll witness any storms on our drive home tonight.

Busy, busy Bournemouth.

Second thunderstorm of the day in Bournemouth.

A lovely thunderstorm, the second of the day, came from this cell over Bournemouth.

The skies had that oppressive look to them for this evening's very humid walk. Car headlights were on early doors too. I hope storms spring eternal if it's going to be this uncomfortable 🌩

One of them was proper crackling around, but the first one could easily blend in with the sound of torrential rain 🌧

Here in Midsomer Norton, we've had torrential downpours and a few rolls of thunder. Looks to be headed from Wales.

There was heavy rain in Bournemouth early doors before we headed off via Shaftesbury towards the Bath area under grey skies and light rain. We have had increasingly torrential downpours at my mother's from the intensifying cells across Wales, plus several rolls of thunder. Reading, where we are headed next, looks to be under some very heavy stuff judging by the radar. It's a bit windy but nothing requiring @TN9 sails!

Thank you @Blessed Weather, very much appreciated

Hmmm, so I'm driving from Bournemouth to Midsomer Norton (just outside of Bath) tomorrow morning, to have lunch with my mother and then drive her to Reading in the afternoon to stay at my sister's. Looking at the Met Office warnings, I'm wondering if we'll be better off leaving early to get ahead of the strongest winds. The way it looks with the timing of the event, we'll be driving along WITH the winds!

Just arrived in Midsomer Norton and didn't do too badly. A very heavy squall around Guildford at 10.15, then a handful more as we progressed past Alton and from there across Salisbury Plain. Many roads were completely dry and out of nowhere sheets of rain would arrive covering the windscreen. Elsewhere huge puddles were under clear blue skies.

Not looking forward to driving to my mother's in the west country tomorrow. It looks as if we'll have some strong gusts to contend with all the way from Surbiton, across Salisbury Plain and out the other side towards Frome. I just hope it calms down while we're there so we can take my mother somewhere; as anyone with elderly parents at a distance know, they rely on visits to get out and about. The rain arrived by 10am this morning, not too heavy under light grey skies but the radar suggests heavier stuff on the way.

I woke up to the sound of rain at 3am and thought I heard a distant rumble of thunder, but wasn't sure if it was just a plane overhead. The rain cleared through by about 9am and it feels so lovely and fresh now.

Just back from around Covent Garden, where we twice had to go indoors while enjoying a relaxing beverage due to the light drizzle becoming heavy. It's feeling very wam and humid out there now with the sun sometimes peeking through mostly cloudy skies.

Hmmm, career choices eh? Weather forecasting combined with weather photography?