Ireland bathes in spring sunshine

Temperatures reached over 16c on Wednesday afternoon in the mid-west and southwest this afternoon on what has been a beautiful day across Ireland.

Shannon Airport in County Clare reached a high of 16.1c at 3pm and 4pm, while Valentia Observatory in County Kerry recorded 16.6c at 3pm.

Temperatures will likely reach 18c during Thursday, but it will remain a few degrees cooler in the northeast.

The sunshine was on display on live webcams the length and breadth of Ireland during Wednesday, as evidenced in these clips from Kerry, Dublin, Galway, Donegal and Limerick.

A change is on the way during Friday with heavy showers becoming widespread as the day progresses.

It will remain mild on Friday with temperatures ranging from 12c to 15c, highest once again in the west.

Further showers will affect the country during Saturday and could merge to give longer spells of rain in some places.