Flooding hits north east as one month's rainfall of nearly TWO INCHES falls in just 24 hours... and there's no sign of warmer weather to come

The elusive spring weather is still showing no signs of appearing in Britain, with the north of the country hit by torrential rain and flooding today.
Heavy downpours turned a busy dual carriageway in Newcastle into a virtual river this morning, while flooding in Durham - which has seen almost a month's worth of rainfall in the space of 24 hours - left motorists stranded on waterlogged rural roads.
Flood alerts are in place across the north east, and while forecasters are predicting drier days in the week ahead, Britons keeping their fingers crossed for warmer weather are likely to be disappointed.

Downpours: Torrential rain turned the busy route in Newcastle into a river this morning

Flooding: The less than spring-like weather in Newcastle saw a busy dual carriageway closed off to traffic today after heavy downpours

While temperatures could creep up as far as 19C in London tomorrow, the rest of the week will remain cool, the Met Office said.

The lowest temperature recorded overnight was in Exeter, where the mercury plunged to 1.7C.
The heavy rainfall sweeping the north of the country and Scotland today is expected to move off towards the west later on, turning to patchy showers by this evening, senior operational meteorologist Jenny Rourke said.

Jams: The dual carriageway was eventually closed to traffic today while council workers struggled to divert water away from the surface of the road

Chaos: Flood warnings are in place in the north of England as a result of the heavy rainfall

Damp days: May is well underway, yet the scene in Newcastle this morning was far from spring-like

Sodden: Drenched council workers laid sandbags in a bid to control the flooding in Newcastle

Nonetheless yellow rain warnings remain in place across the North East and North West of England and Yorkshire, along with swathes of Scotland and Northern Ireland.
Motorists were seen inching their cars through floodwater on Scotswood Road in Newcastle today, before the busy route was eventually closed to traffic as council workers worked to divert the water off the road.
In Durham a stranded driver had to be rescued after his car got stuck on a waterlogged rural road.
The relentless rain had rendered the country lane near Staindrop impassable.
The Met Office said around 1.8 inches of rain fell in Durham in the 24 hours to this afternoon, and police in the area were warning drivers to take extra care on the roads today.

Rising water: This BMW driver needed a helping hand after running into trouble on a flooded Durham road

Stranded: A driver was given a helping hand after getting stuck in floods near Staindrop in Durham today

Waterlogged: Heavy rainfall across the north of England left some routes impassable

Impassable: A tow truck came to the driver's rescue on the flooded country lane in Durham, which has been swept by heavy downpours

Torrential: This Met Office rainfall radar graphic reveals the heavy rain that swept the north of England this morning

Ms Rourke said the north of England was experiencing the worst of the dismal spring weather today.

She said the rest of the weekend was expected to be 'much drier', but warned that warmer temperatures on the horizon for the south of the country tomorrow would not last.

Gathering clouds: Ominous clouds in the skies over Wiltshire created a dramatic scene at the Stourhead estate today

Dreary: Yellow wild flowers provide a much-needed splash of sunshine on a dreary day at the 18th Century gardens in Wiltshire

Brighter spells: The Met Office has predicted a brighter, drier day tomorrow, but the warmer temperatures won't last into next week

Buttercups: Cheerful yellow flowers brighten up the picturesque landscaped gardens at the Stourhead estate

Elusive spring weather: Tomorrow is expected to be a brighter, warmer day, especially in the south of the country

'The good news is that the weather for the south of the country is looking quite nice,' she said.
'The whole of the country will see a dry day with bright spells, with temperatures getting up to the high teens - 19C for London, 15C for Newcastle. It will be a bright day tomorrow for most places.
'But in the week ahead there's not going to be those sorts of high temperatures, they won't be hanging around for too long,' the meteorologist said.
'While we're not going to be seeing the sort of rain we had yesterday, there will be light and patchy rain in the early part of next week and showers in the middle of the week too.'

The outlook for the week may be less than promising given the time of year, but spring was definitely in evidence in at least one corner of London today as florists put the finishing touches to their colourful displays ahead of the Chelsea Flower Show next week.
A wall of cascading pink blooms was among the extravagant foliage photographed today ahead of the opening of the event on Tuesday.
The RHS Chelsea Flower Show will run from May 21 to 25 in the capital.

Floral displays: The organisers behind the Chelsea Flower Show will be hoping for blue skies when the event opens on Tuesday

Signs of springtime: Spring was evident in at least one corner of London today, where florists were putting the final touches to arrangements ahead of the Chelsea Flower Show next week

Colourful: Rebecca Louise Law makes some final tweaks to her display of cascading pink blooms

Preparations: Carrie Burgess inspects the See Ability garden as opening day of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show draws near

Sneak preview: The staple springtime event will run from Tuesday until Saturday

Greenery: A man inspects the M and G garden as preparations for the RHS Chelsea Flower Show get underway in London

Anticipation: The arrival of the Chelsea Flower Show is a sure sign of spring, with or without the addition of sunshine

Creepy theme: Charlie Powell adjusts some skeletons in the Sculpture Park ahead of the show in London

Forecasters at the Meteogroup warned people in central and eastern England to brace themselves for further showers on Monday, while the rest of the UK can expect to see cloudy skies with the best of the sunshine in the west.
There is also the risk of the odd sharp shower in the north and east, the group said.

Green-fingers: The annual show has been held in the grounds of the Chelsea Hospital every year since 1913

DAILYMAIL