Bolton given Met Office yellow warning for thunderstorm today

A large portion of the UK is forecast to experience thunder today.

Bolton is also set for high temperatures with the town hitting 27°C.

A Met Office spokesperson said: "Whilst many places will be largely dry, thunderstorms with heavy rain and hail are likely to develop in some places on Sunday afternoon."

Queens Park in the sun (Image: Newsquest)

The weather service says there is a 'small chance' that homes and businesses could be flooded quickly and there is a chance of delays and cancellations to train and bus services where flooding or lightning strikes occur.

It also says that spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and road closures, with a 'slight chance' of power cuts occurring and other services to homes and businesses being lost.

Here is the hour-by-hour forecast for Bolton:

10am: 21°

11am: 22°

Noon: 23°

1pm: 24°

2pm: 25°

3pm: 25°

4pm: 26° and a 50% chance of a thunder shower

5pm: 24°

6pm: 24°

7pm: 23°

8pm: 22°

9pm: 21°

10pm: 21°

11pm: 20°

This comes as an amber alert has been issued for the first time this year across other parts of the country.

The weather warning in place across the country (Image: PA)

The decision to move to an amber alert has been made due to latest Met Office forecasts, which indicate there is a high likelihood that forecasted temperatures will be reached rapidly over the weekend in these regions, while we are also likely to see high overnight temperatures.

An amber alert indicates that weather impacts are likely to be felt across the whole health service, and at that level we may begin to see some health impacts across the wider population, not just the most vulnerable.

Parts of the country are predicted to be hotter than Marbella, Ibiza and Tenerife in the coming days as a “plume of warm air” moves in from the south.