Any Britons holding out for some summer sunshine had better get used to waiting a bit longer.

Even though we are well into June, there is no sign of the cool, wet weather dissipating from the UK.

On Monday, the Met Office said the weather will remain unsettled for the rest of this week, with thundery showers in some areas.

The chilly, sodden start to the summer over the past 10 days followed the warmest May and spring on record – although it’s worth pointing out that last month was also dominated by rainy conditions.

The Met Office has already dismissed numerous reports from independent forecasters of an incoming heatwave this month, but at this point most Britons would just be glad of a break from the rain.

When will the UK’s summer weather improve?

Not any time soon, according to the Met Office.

Its spokesperson Stephen Dixon told Yahoo News UK on Monday: “The forecast for this week is for more unsettled weather for the UK, with some periods of more persistent rain at times.”

Temperatures will remain below average in the next few days because of a northerly wind drawing air from the Arctic across the UK, and it will be generally dry on Tuesday and Wednesday in the west of the country, with some rain in eastern areas.

Read more: When is the next UK heatwave going to be?

However, a “more unsettled weather regime” sweeps in on Thursday and Friday, with the prospect of “thundery showers” in the south east of England.

Temperatures will remain largely in the mid-teens this week, although the south east could reach 19C on Thursday and Friday.

However, Dixon said: “It won’t feel particularly warm with the rain we have been having.”

What is the long-term weather forecast for the UK?

In its long-range forecast for the period between Friday 14 and Sunday 23 June, the Met Office said this weekend with likely see a mix of sunshine and showers, bad news for England and Scotland football fans who hope to fire up the barbecue while cheering on their teams in their opening matches in the European Championships.

The Met Office said showers on Friday, Saturday and Sunday “could become heavy and slow moving and there is a chance these might turn thundery at times”.

It said rain is likely to be a fixture into next week, with the eastern half of Scotland and England set to be hit by wetter weather.

While the picture between Monday 24 June and Monday 8 July is unclear, the Met Office said: “All areas can expected to see some spells of drier, sunnier weather, but there will also be showers or longer spells of rain at times.”

Is this the wettest summer so far?

Time will tell, of course, but despite the seemingly endless rain, June hasn’t been any wetter than average, although the Met Office warned this could change.

“Summer rainfall patterns mean that the differences from average can change quite quickly,” Dixon told Yahoo News UK.

“At this point in June you’d expect the UK to be at 30% of its average rainfall for the whole month and we’re currently at 21%.

“So we’re a little drier than average so far in the month, but there’s over half of the month still to go and a forecast for more rain on the way.”

At the end of last month, the Met Office dismissed reports there would be up to 50 days of rain this summer, close to the record of 55 days set more than 100 years ago in 1912.

Will there be a UK heatwave and when?

The Met Office has consistently ruled out forecasts of a heatwave from independent forecasters this summer, and has been proven correct on each occasion.

As an example, earlier in the month some weather services were predicting highs of 28C this Thursday, when the temperature is now looking like it will struggle to get above 16C.

On Monday, Dixon told Yahoo News UK: “There are no signals for a heatwave in the current forecast.”

The Met Office says the UK heatwave threshold is met when a location records a period of “at least three consecutive days” with daily maximum temperatures meeting or exceeding the heatwave temperature threshold – the threshold ranges from 25C in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to 28C in London and parts of the south and south east of England.

Why is the weather so bad this summer?

Dixon said: “The weather may have felt somewhat unsettled so far due to the northerly airflow which has developed in recent days, which is subduing temperatures somewhat with a cool pool of air over the UK.”

Whether things change later in June and into July and the UK finally enjoys a proper summer remains to be seen, but the signs over the coming week are ominous.