SAY goodbye to the sunshine - the Met Office has issued a weather warning for thunderstorms over the region. 

The scorching heat which has baked the area for the last five days will soon give way to cloudy skies and heavy showers.

The thunderstorm warning is in place from 8pm today until 10pm on Saturday, and a new warning will be in place on Sunday from 9am.

The warnings are in place for most of the South West, including Gloucestershire, South Gloucestershire and North Wiltshire. 

After soaring to 30 degrees Celsius for much of the week, temperatures have cooled to around 25C with lows of 15C.

The sunshine is expected to stick around for the rest of Friday but rain is forecast to begin in the early hours of Saturday morning and bring temperatures down further to at most 20C.

Intermittent light showers are likely in the afternoon, with the sun peeking from behind cloud cover.

These conditions will continue into Sunday, with temperatures then ranging between 15C and 22C.

UV rays will be less strong and the pollen level will decrease over the weekend.

A Met Office spokesman said: "Heavy rain and thunderstorms may lead to some disruption and flooding.

"Spray and sudden flooding could lead to difficult driving conditions and some road closures.

"Flooding of homes and businesses could happen quickly, with damage to some buildings from floodwater, lightning strikes or hail.

"Where flooding or lightning strikes occur, there is a chance of delays and some cancellations to train and bus services.

"Power cuts might occur and other services to some homes and businesses could be lost."