The warning is in place from 11am until 11.59pm on Thursday with the Met Office forecasting that up to 2cm of rain is widely expected, and hilly areas could see up to 4cm.

Bus and train services will likely experience delays and flooding on roads will affect drivers, the meteorology service said.

Check the weather forecast where you are

A second yellow warning for an area around Leicester was also issued, which will run from 2pm on Thursday to 3am on Friday.

The Environment Agency has also warned the public to avoid walking, cycling, or driving through floods during the period of heavy rain.

Other areas, especially southeast England, will see bright or sunny spells on Thursday.

As the weekend approaches, there will be drier and brighter conditions across the UK with only a few showers and some rain in the west.

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Thursday's heavy rain warning comes as last night marked England's warmest Valentine's night on record - with temperatures not falling below 11.5C on the Isles of Scilly.

The previous record was 11.1C in Teignmouth, Devon in 1914.