Britain is braced for more flooding after weekend deluge

After some places saw almost an inch fall in an hour, the Environment Agency warned parts of Yorkshire, Humberside, the North East, Wales, the Midlands and Derbyshire to prepare for more trouble.

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The rain was expected to die out today everywhere except the South East and it will feel warm and very close, with temperatures reaching up to 77F.

The outlook is unsettled with sunshine and showers for much of the country for the rest of the week. Chris Almond, spokesman for the Met Office, said: "There's no sign that summer is on its way.

"This bad weather doesn't look like stopping. There will be heavy rain today in Essex and Kent, as well as in Scotland, where it is likely to be a miserable day.

"For the rest of the country it will be slightly better, with some sunshine, but there will also be some sharp showers.

"The temperatures are about average for this time of year, maybe reaching 24C or 25C (75 or 77F) in the South, so it will feel very muggy.

"But it's not the kind of weather we expect for July."

Yesterday was even too wet for ducks in Preston, where a plastic duck race due to be staged to raise funds for St Anne's Primary School had to be cancelled.

Organiser Louise Clift said the water level in the stream in the city's Cuerden Park was too high. In Bristol, organisers cancelled the two-day Ashton Court music festival because of the waterlogged conditions.

The dismal summer is being reflected at the supermarkets, where seasonal salads are being left on the shelf in favour of comforting soup.

Waitrose is selling as much whisky as it does in January, while sales of 'wintry' red wine are up and white wine sales are down.

There is one silver lining, however. Figures for burglary are down in many areas because fewer windows are being left open.