DON'T put your brollies away just yet - the Met Office has issued a warning for heavy rain on Thursday.

The yellow 'be aware' alert for Dorset was issued at 11.20am today and is valid from 12pm until 9pm on Thursday. 

The warning says: "Heavy showers and thunderstorms are likely to develop across parts of south west England during Thursday afternoon, eventually dying out again during the evening.

"These showers are likely to be slow-moving and very localised, hence most places will miss them. But where they do occur there is potential for some heavy rain and the public should be aware of the risk of some localised flooding."

A spokesperson for the Met Office said: "An unstable airmass across south west England on Thursday, in combination with high daytime temperatures, will bring the risk of some heavy thunderstorms during the afternoon and early evening.

"Hourly rainfall rates of 20 to 30 mm in an hour are possible, and some of these thundery showers could also persist in a few spots for a number of hours, with a risk of surface water flooding."

Last week Dorset saw spectacular lightning show on Thursday night and the early hours of Saturday morning as thunderstorms rolled across the county. See all the pictures in a gallery here