- .Parts of the east of England could see more than 40mms of rainfall today
- .Music fans at Reading and Leeds festival saw heavy downpours with Bramham Park turned into a mudbath
- .Environment Agency has issued 18 flood alerts across the UK - with the majority in the south-east
- .But rain will clear by tomorrow morning with most of UK remaining dry for the rest of the weekend
- .Temperatures will reach a high of 26C in London on Bank Holiday Monday
The August Bank Holiday weekend got off to a damp start this morning with up to a month's worth of rain falling in just a few hours across the east of England.
Weather warnings for heavy rain in the east have been issued by the Met Office for the whole of today with many parts already having localised flooding.
Leeds festival has been one of the worst hit areas with torrential rain falling throughout the night from 11pm, leaving Bramham Park resembling a giant mudbath.
Tents were left soggy, and their occupants soggier, but festival staff managed to keep the arena passable by covering the ground in woodchips.
Making the most of it: Festival goers Rebecca Henderson, 20, Annmarie Shannon, 22, and Helen Welburne, 22, walking through the mud at Leeds Festival 2013
Oops: A festival goer falls down into the mud at Leeds festival - covering her legs in thick mud
No point in wearing these anymore: A reveller at Leeds Festival removes her wellington boots after ending up covered in mud past her knees
Diving in: A festival goer falls into the mud at Leeds Festival in Bramham Park after heavy rain today
Brightening up: Much of the east of England will experience heavy rain showers today but it will begin to clear tomorrow ahead of bright sunny spells on Monday
Slippery slope: This reveller obviously struggled to keep on his feet after heavy rain at Leeds Festival turned much of the grounds in Bramham Park into a mudbath
Stuck in the mud: Despite the heavy rainfall and muddy field, the 80,000-strong crowd still seemed determined to have a good time
The weather forecast for the rest of the day suggested the rain would hang around - but it did not seem to have soured the mood among revellers.
Charlotte Price and Tom Hinchcliffe, both 18 and from Bramham, said they were excited about seeing tonight's headliner's Green Day and would not be put off by the weather and muddy conditions.
Charlotte said: 'I don't think it'll put anyone off. If you spend 200 quid you want to be here.'
Chris Hutton, 25, and Aaron Hall, 23, both from Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, said they were looking forward to seeing Kodaline and Zane Lowe, who was due to be DJing on the Relentless stage in the campsite later on.
Chris said the wet weather and mud did not worry him. 'We'll be all right,' he said. 'It ruined our plans last night though.'
Joshua Ball and Sophie Liddle, both 19 and from Leeds, said they would be making their way to the front for Green Day's set tonight.
Joshua said: 'I love it muddy. We'll be covered in mud later.'
Joshua said: 'I love it muddy. We'll be covered in mud later.'
Sophie said: 'I wouldn't let wet weather put us off. You just put a hoodie on don't you. It'd be better if it was sunny but at the end of the day you can't do anything about that can we.'
The outlook for today was also bad news for music fans at Reading festival. Wellies and ponchos were the order of the day at the Reading site, with showers expected to continue throughout the afternoon.
It's weather for wellies: Music fans walk through the mud at Leeds Festival where there has been heavy downpours as much of the east of England is expected to see rain today
Hitching a lift: Those who forgot their wellies or just didn't want them to get muddy found alternate ways of getting around Leeds Festival
Quick thinking: A music fan was forced to carry out some emergency DIY on his wellies after heavy rainfall at Leeds Festival
Jumping for joy: These music fans at Reading festival seem more than happy despite the rain after buying some umbrella hats
Forecasters warned there could be downpours during the evening and into tonight.
Brendan Jones from MeteoGroup, said: 'The rain willl get heavier during the night. It's very much downhill from now on.'
Revellers took it in their stride however. Zak Rollinson, 19, from the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, said: 'I wanted to have one really good day of weather and one bad day. You need mud on the ground for it to be a proper festival.'
His friend David Green, also 19, said: 'You've got to be able to try out your new wellies. We're really looking forward to Eminem. I got my ticket as soon as I heard he was playing.'
The American rapper headlines the Reading site tonight, with Chase & Status and Foals also playing the main stage.
The Met Office spokesman said 'If I was going to Reading festival today I would be sure to take an umbrella with me.
Running for cover: A woman attempts to run for shelter from a heavy downpour of rain in Kilburn, North London
Downpour: A woman walks through the torrential rain in a pair of flip flops in Notting Hill, London, as much of the east of the country was hit by heavy rain
Walking in the rain: There was a soggy start to the Bank Holiday weekend for many today with heavy rain on the eastern side of the country, including Notting Hill, London, pictured
Causing a splash: A driver causes a large splash over the pavement as they drive through large puddles in Kilburn, North London
Soaking wet: A rain soaked woman makes her way through a heavy downpour of rain in Kilburn, North London
'There's a strong chance of sudden, heavy downpours throughout the day and overnight.
'From Hampshire eastwards and north to Yorkshire, it's not going to be a nice afternoon. It will be very wet and a weather warning for rain has been issued for the entire region.
'Across the rest of the UK it will clearer with sunny spells. Ironically, it is likely to be warmer in the areas where rain is expected because of cloud cover. Temperatures will reach highs of 21C.'
Some localised areas in the south-east, such as Kent, Sussex and London, could see flash flooding with more than 40mm of rain expected to fall in quick bursts today.
Parts of Yorkshire and Lincolnshire have also experienced heavy downpours. York had 15mms of rainfall within one hour by 6am this morning.
A spokesman for the Met Office added: 'It's very likely that some areas in the east of England could see a month's worth of rainfall in a few hours.
Plenty of space: Brighton beach in East Sussex, which is often full to the brim when the weather is warm, was left virtually empty today
Grey day: A few brave people brave the cold winds to sit on the beach in Brighton, Sussex, which has remained almost completely deserted throughout the day
Out and about: Visitors walk along the seafront in Brighton, East Sussex, at the start of the August Bank Holiday weekend
This will be very localised, there have been some reports of flash flooding in Kent and London with 20mms falling in just an hour.'[
The average rainfall for the whole of the UK is 89.5mm but this drops to just 62.3mm in the south-east. And with many parts expected to see more than 40mms fall today, many won't be far off the average for the entire month of August.
Rain also delayed the start of play on day four of the fifth Ashes test between England and Australia at The Oval today.
The Championship match between Charlton Athletic and Doncaster Rovers at The Valley in London was suspended today because of heavy rain.
The Environment Agency has issued 18 flood alerts - two in Anglia, three in the Midlands, one in the north-east, nine in the south-east, one in the south-west and two in Wales.
But the weather will gradually improve in the east tomorrow before the whole country will finally be able to enjoy sunny weather together on Bank Holiday Monday, with predicted highs of 26C (78.8F).
Tom Tobler, a forecaster for MeteoGroup, said: 'There will be quite a clear east-west split over the weekend.
'There will be a lot of heavy rain about, confined mainly to the east of the UK.
'In contrast the west will be mainly dry, with just the off shower.
It could be worse: While areas including Saltburn, Cleveland, have seen heavy downpours, this Bank Holiday is far from the wettest the UK has seen which was 152.2mms of rain in 1992
Localised flooding: A 4x4 drives through localised flooding in Saltburn, Cleveland, England, today after heavy rainfall
Wet weekend: Residents of Saltburn, Cleveland, pictured, is just one of numerous areas across the east of England which is expected to see heavy rainfall today
Summer showers: Drivers in Saltburn, Cleveland, England, attempt to drive along flooded roads after heavy rain left many nearly impassable
Rained off: Charlton Athletic players leave the pitch after play is suspended due to extreme weather during the Championship match between Charlton Athletic and Doncaster Rovers at The Valley in London
Delayed start: A spectator sits in the rain on the fourth day of the fifth Ashes cricket test match between England and Australia, which was delayed due to the bad weather, at the Oval cricket ground in London today
Bad day for sport: Empty stands at The Oval this morning as bad weather delayed the start of play on day four of the Fifth Investec Ashes Test match
On the road: A fire engine driving through flooded roads in Littlehampton, Sussex, this morning
Fire fighters try to put out a tree fire in Worthing, Sussex, today which was sparked when it was struck by lightning during thunder storms
'The rain will be the heaviest in the south-east and the north, with a risk of flooding in areas which see thunderstorms.
'It's a gradually improving picture on Sunday, but Monday will be the best day of the three-day weekend.
'The east will catch up and the majority of the UK will enjoy sunny, dry weather with highs of 26C.'
In west London it will be a dreary kick-off to the UK's largest carnival tomorrow, with the loud, colourful procession met with rain, improving slightly in the afternoon.
But the rain is unlikely to put people off from attending the Notting Hill Carnival, one of the liveliest events on the London calendar
By Monday temperatures will have reached 23C (73.4F). Although not quite Caribbean temperatures, the skies will at least be dry.
The Met Office issued a weather warning for heavy rain for much of the east of England today, pictured circled left, while the south-east saw heavy downpours this morning, highlighted right in yellow, orange and red
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