UK weather live: Tornado alert issued as heavy rain and thunderstorms strike amid Met Office warnings

Warnings of flooding and even brief tornadoes have been issued for parts of the UK as heavy rain begins to lash down on many regions of the country.

The Met Office a more severe amber alert is also active for a central region of England – including Birmingham, Worcester, Leicester and Peterborough – with rain likely to cause flooding and disruption this evening and Friday morning.

The Tornado and Storm Research Organisation has also forecast much of the south-east will see lightning, winds up to 50mph and even “isolated brief tornadoes”. This includes much of East Anglia, the south-east Midlands and central southern England.

More than 50 flood warnings have been issued by the Environment Agency across England, meaning flooding is expected, and 200 flood alerts, meaning flooding is possible.

It follows heavy rain and flash flooding in some parts of the country on Monday and Tuesday. In Northamptonshire, a holiday park was evacuated due to flooding on Tuesday night.

Met Office chief meteorologist Neil Armstrong said: “We are expecting an area of slow-moving showers and thunderstorms to develop this afternoon and evening across parts of the Midlands. The rain will fall onto already saturated ground, potentially affecting communities still recovering from recent flooding.”