UK weather forecast LIVE – Temperatures to reach balmy 17C by next weekend as the UK’s record-breaking Big Freeze ends
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TEMPERATURES could rise as high as 17C by next weekend as the UK's record-breaking Big Freeze - thankfully - comes to an end.
In a sudden switch from snow and sub-zero temperatures during Beast from the East Two, following Storm Darcy, the mercury will soar back up to double digits from Monday.
That'll bring much-needed relief for locked-down Brits.
All of the UK will be basking in a "warmer air mass, with daytime temperatures reaching 11-12C in the south, replacing days which never got above freezing the week before," says Met Office chief meteorologist Neil Armstrong.
And by next Sunday the mercury could soar as high as 17C with forecasters expecting temperatures “way above average for this time of year.”
Chris Fawkes from BBC Weather said: "We’re starting to draw up more of a southerly flow of wind and that will start to drag up some of the warmer air from north Africa and Spain, which will push across westerly Europe and across parts of the United Kingdom."
Follow our weather live blog below for the latest news and updates from around the country
BIG CHILL
Temperatures are set to drop over the first February weekend, with much of the UK braced for a wintry chill.
The mercury could plunge to freezing in some areas, while heavy snowfall may cause significant disruption to transport and power.
Weather warnings are in place over the next few days, with a warning for snow and ice covering the length of Britain from midday on Saturday to midnight on Sunday.
FORECAST FOR TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
Tonight: Daytime showers will continue across England and Wales, with clear spells developing.
Outbreaks of rain across Northern Ireland and northern England will continue before clearing overnight. Unsettled and overcast across Scotland with cloudy skies and outbreaks of snow which will be heavy at times.
Tomorrow: Saturday will be overcast with further snow expected across Scotland with significant accumulations possible.
Rain will fall increasingly as sleet and snow across southern Scotland and northern England. There will be scattered showers and outbreaks of rain across much of northern and eastern England.
WINTER CHILL ON THE WAY FOR FIRST WEEKEND OF FEBRUARY
Temperatures are set to drop over the first February weekend, with much of the UK braced for a wintry chill.
The mercury could plunge to freezing in some areas, while heavy snowfall may cause significant disruption to transport and power.
Weather warnings are in place over the next few days, with a warning for snow and ice covering the length of Britain from midday on Saturday to midnight on Sunday.
By next week, temperatures will be struggling to get much above 0C in quite a few places, with some areas such as the Pennines and high parts of Scotland seeing several degrees below that.
WEATHER FORECAST
Weekend weather forecast - Heavy snow to fall in London and south with severe weather warnings until next weekOTTERS GET INTO SLEDGING
Perfect otter-shaped incisions were seen amongst the thick layers of snow, suggesting an otter had been sliding around his riverside home to explore.
This might even be better than spotting paw prints in the snow!
COLDEST FEBRUARY
Bookmaker Coral puts odds on at 4-5 that this February is the coldest the UK has ever had, with many parts set for more snow.
Coral's Harry Aitkenhead said: "The amount of rain we have endured this winter seems scarcely believable and it's been so wet that we now make this winter odds on to go into the record books as the wettest ever in the UK.
"Temperatures in the north of England and Scotland are remaining close to freezing and it is only 5-4 that this month is our coldest February of all time."
HEAVY SNOW FOR LONDON AND SOUTH
Heavy snow will fall in London and the south of Britain on Saturday with a Yellow weather warning for snow and ice covering much of England
London and the South East, the East Midlands, the North East, the North West and parts of the South West will all be affected from tomorrow.
The MET office say there is a chance of travel delays on roads with some vehicles and passengers becoming stranded, along with delayed or cancelled rail and air travel
There is also a chance that power cuts will occur and other services, such as mobile phone coverage, may be affected
Meanwhile the Met Office has warned parts of Scotland may see an additional foot-and-a-half of snow by the end of Saturday.
BEAST FROM THE EAST
Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey said: "We could see a drop of about 10C in widely expected daytime temperatures going into the weekend and next week.
"Cold air will come in from the east over the weekend, which will bring temperatures down.
"That doesn't take into account the wind chill, so those cold winds may make it feel much colder than temperatures."
WEEKEND FORECAST
Saturday: Cloudy on Saturday with spells of rain and scattered showers, these mostly in the north and east and will fall as snow across parts of Scotland and northern England.
Sunday: Cold and cloudy with snow spreading from the east and will be largely confined to eastern areas of Britain.
TOMORROW’S FORECAST
Day: Dull and cloudy with outbreaks of rain across Scotland which will fall as sleet and snow for northern and central areas.
There will be spots of mostly light rain across northern England and Northern Ireland. Bright spells further south however scattered showers will develop during the afternoon.
Night: Daytime showers will continue across England and Wales and clear spells will develop.
Outbreaks of rain across Northern Ireland and northern England will continue before clearing overnight.
Unsettled and overcast across Scotland with cloudy skies and outbreaks of snow which will be heavy at times.
IS SPRING ANY NEAR SPRINGING?
Well, the first snowdrops of the season have begun to emerge, often seen as the start of spring.
NORTH EAST ENGLAND SEES FREAKISH RAINFALL LEVEL
Up to 80mm of rain is expected to have fallen in isolated parts of the north-east of England by Saturday lunchtime - almost one-and-a-half times the volume expected in the region during the whole month of February.
WHAT WAS THE COLDEST UK JANUARY EVER?
The coldest January on record was 1963 with a mean temperature of minus 1.9C.
JANUARY WAS COLDEST IN DECADE
Last month was the coldest January for ten years, the Met Office said.
It said that last month had an average temperature of 2.2C, making it the coldest across the UK since 2010 when the average UK January temperature was 0.9C.
LOADS OF FLOOD WARNING AS WELL
The Environment Agency currently has dozens of its second-most-severe flood warnings in place, along sections of river including the Thames, the Severn, and the Ouse, meaning flooding is expected.
There are also more than 100 less-severe flood alerts in place, across almost every region of England, meaning flooding is possible.
GLUT OF MET OFFICE YELLOW WEATHER WARNINGS
They warn of snowfall across much of Scotland on Thursday, with further rainfall warnings across the north-east of England and Northern Ireland.
A more severe amber snow warning is also in place for much of Scotland from the early hours of tomorrow until midday Saturday, with forecasters predicting as much as 50cm snowfall in the highest areas between now and Saturday evening.
Further yellow weather warnings on Sunday cover much of Scotland and the east coast of England down as far as parts of Cambridgeshire and Essex, warning of the risk of some snow and ice into Monday.
SNOW, 10C TEMPERATURE DROP AND A MONTH'S WORTH OF RAIN
Vast swathes of the UK will feel like they have been plunged back into the depths of winter in the coming days, with heavy snowfall, huge temperature drops, and a month's worth of rain all forecast in pockets of England and Scotland.
Temperatures could drop by around 10 degrees to barely above freezing between today and Monday across large parts of England.
Yet it may feel as cold as minus 5C across sections of the UK from Sunday, with a band of cold air forecast to move in from the east, remaining in place for the early part of next week.
Mild temperatures currently in the low double-figures in England will drop steadily to around 2C by Sunday, before hovering around freezing by Monday.
SNOW-MG — SCOTLAND SET FOR BLANKETING
NEW SNOW WARNINGS FOR LONDON THIS WEEKEND
The Met Office has released new warnings for snow in the capital this weekend.
Saturday begins cloudy with developing rain, which has the potential to turn to snow overnight as temperatures plummet.
The wet weather gradually eases on Sunday, continuing into Monday which is set to be largely dry but very cold and cloudy.
NEW APPLE WEATHER FEATURE SHOWS HOURLY PRECIPITATION
A new feature from Apple shows users detailed precipitation for the next-hour using data from national weather services.
The nifty new addition shows people the a digital representation of the next hours rain, representing the power and rate it falls.
The feature, using data from The Met Office, has been available in the US for a number of years but Apple have only just expanded it to other countries.
PM RISKS "HUMILIATION" IF HE GOES AHEAD WITH NEW COAL MINE IN CUMBRIA
A leading climate scientist has warned the PM he risks "humiliation" going ahead with plans for a new coal mine in Cumbria.
James Hansen, NASA'S former leading global warming researcher, urged Boris Johnson to stop production or face being "vilified"
The government granted plans for the mine in Whitehaven to go ahead last year, and have said they won't reverse the local council's ruling on the mine.
In a letter Dr Hansen writes, "You have a chance to change the course of our climate trajectory, earning the UK and yourself historic accolades. Or you can stick with business-almost-as-usual and be vilified around the world.
"It would be easy to achieve this latter ignominy and humiliation - just continue with the plan to open a new coal mine in Cumbria in contemptuous disregard of the future of young people and nature. The contrary path is not so easy, but, with your leadership, it is realistic."
OTTERS OFF SLEDGING
Humans are not the only ones who know how to make the most of the snow - as employees of a Scottish National Park spotted otter sledging tracks.
Perfect otter-shaped incisions were seen amongst the thick layers of snow, suggesting an otter had been sliding around his riverside home to explore.
This might even be better than spotting paw prints in the snow!
NEXT WEEKS FORECAST
The second week of February remains cold, with a significant wind-chill particularly in eastern areas.
Expect snow showers across eastern Scotland, England and potentially Northern Ireland. Bright sunny weather very likely further west.
There is also a chance of a period of heavy snowfall across parts of southern England and Wales on Tuesday, and the brisk winds see no sign of relenting.
Wintry hazards could persist after snow showers in the east, alongside organised rain and snow from the south-west and southern parts of the country will slowly increasing.
LANDSLIDE HITS HOMES IN NOTTINGHAMSHIRE
A landslide caused by heavy rainfall caused a 70ft wall to collapse into neighbouring homes just after they were evacuated during the night.
Five families had to flee their terraced homes as swathes of rubble fell at 1am on Wednesday in Nottinghamshire.
They were rescued from their properties when their bathrooms and kitchens flooded during the relentless downpour.
Local residents were woken by the sounds of bricks and earth collapsing into gardens.
RED OR BLUE INK?
Squabbling over whether to use red or blue ink on post-Brexit customs forms is among the problems plaguing exporters who are facing a "whack-a-mole" situation, a Scottish trade body has warned.
Scotland Food and Drink chief executive James Withers told MSPs the sector has faced approximately £1 million in lost sales every day during "an absolutely dreadful first few weeks of trading in this post-Brexit world".
Among the "catalogue of problems that have just been racking up day by day" since the implementation of the Brexit trade deal, Mr Withers revealed there was an "ongoing debate about whether forms should be filled in in red ink or blue ink".
Giving evidence to Holyrood's Europe Committee, he explained: "You think you get the right colour of ink and you're told that the signature needs to be in a different colour to the colour that the letterhead is on.
"Part of the challenge here - particularly the other side of the channel - is you've got a lot of young, inexperienced customs agents. It's like whack-a-mole: a problem crops up, you hit it on the head and fix it and then another two crop up at the same time."