Rain stops play at Wimbledon and dampens the spirits at Henley - as Met Office warns voters will face thundery downpours when they head to the polls tomorrow

Rain has stopped play at Wimbledon and dampened the spirits of punters at Henley Royal Regatta as the Met Office warns voters will face thundery downpours when they head to the polls on Thursday.

Strong winds and wet weather have already hit parts of the country on Wednesday, forcing Regatta guests and Wimbledon fans to take umbrellas and raincoats to both events.

Play has been delayed by more than two hours on some courts at SW19, as organisers hope to get matches underway this afternoon. But spectators are bracing themselves for more rain throughout the day, despite temperatures reaching a warm high of 19C.

It was a similar story for attendees of both events yesterday - as punters in Henley and south west London were pictured sporting bright coats, coverings and umbrellas. 

Torrential downpours are also forecast for much of the UK on election day as unsettled conditions bring 'a rush of showers with a heavy risk of thunder'.

The Met Office outlook for the London area on Wednesday says: 'A cloudy day with some dry spells, but also some outbreaks of rain and drizzle at times.

'Cloud is thickening from the west towards the end of the afternoon. Warm.'

Wimbledon fans will not have to fear a complete washout however, as the roofs on Centre Court and Court One can be used to enable matches involving stars such as Carlos Alcaraz, Naomi Osaka and Jannik Sinner to go ahead. 

Elsewhere, showers are likely to arrive in northern areas of the UK this evening and winds will 'pick up strength' and turn conditions gusty in the next 24 hours.

Meanwhile, the rest of the country is expected to face drier conditions, where temperatures could reach 20C in the south west and south east and 17C across the east of England.

The weather is likely to play a huge part in people's voting behaviour on Thursday. According to UK Election Statistics, for every centimetre of rainfall on polling day, turnout reduces by 0.95 percentage points. 

Met Office meteorologist Clare Nasir said: 'It will be sunshine and showers for northern England through the first part of the day on Thursday.

'Elsewhere, some brighter skies coming through with some sunshine as well.

'But these showers towards the north are likely to be frequent.

'The winds will be gusty, particularly through the morning, but even the afternoon, so a keen breeze with temperatures around 15C or 16C, whereas we could see a 21C down towards the south.' 

July has begun with a spell of cool and wet weather and Met Office predictions state that this is unlikely to change in the next seven days, with no signs of heatwave temperatures anywhere in the country.

Instead, a mixture of cloud, rain and sunny spells can be expected, with highs of around 16-17C and temperatures that may feel as low as 7C overnight.

It comes after provisional Met Office figures suggested June 2024 was a dry, cool and sunny month compared to the UK's long-term average. 

After Sunday (July 7), more mixed weather is predicted with 'stronger winds at times' and 'tentative signs that further into next week, conditions may begin to gradually turn a bit more settled, at least for a time'.

Temperatures are then likely to 'trend back up to average and then potentially above average as the week progresses.' 

The Henley Royal Regatta is a rowing event held annually on the River Thames and was established on 26 March 1839.

Depending on the day you attend, daily admission prices range between £34 - £56 per person.

The 2024 Regatta will be raced over six days from Tuesday, 2 July to Sunday, 7 July. Racing is expected to finish at around 19:30 each day, except on Sunday when the last race will be at 16:30.