'No escape' from cold snap as two week ice and snow blast set to batter Britain

23 November 2023 , 23:15

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Two weeks of ice and snow are coming to the UK, a new forecast says (Image: Getty Images)

A two-week ice and snow blast is set to batter Britain as winter arrives early, according to a new weather forecast.

A sharp drop in temperatures will be felt across the UK on Friday, as cold air from the Arctic ushers in a new phase of colder conditions. It will stay chilly throughout the weekend and beyond, with mercury diving to -5C overnight in some northern areas and barely registering above that in the south.

Officially, meteorological winter doesn't begin until next Friday, December 1 - but ice, snow, and frost will make an appearance well before then, according to one expert.

Weather for Saturday 2 December (WXcharts)

Jim Dale, Senior Meteorological Consultant at British Weather Services, said people on higher ground in Scotland, Wales and northern England are most likely to be impacted this weekend. He told the Express.co.uk: "We’ll more or less remain in the fridge and occasionally the freezer to month’s end, with the growing threat of some sporadic snow - though chiefly for the higher ground of Scotland, Wales and perhaps the Pennines."

He went on to explain that this wintry weather is likely to stick around, adding: "I don’t see us easily escaping the colder regime of weather, with the flow principally from Europe; though the Atlantic will keep throwing low pressure and frontal systems at us, so everything is marginal and likely to be very messy, staying that way towards the December 10."

Gales, snow and rain to batter country today with 80mph wind gusts

Further ahead, maps from WXCharts also show Britain hit by snow further south, with London and the southeast likely to be hit overnight on December 5. Further snow showers are then expected to last until December 9. The Met Office meanwhile forecasts "cold winds" to arrive from the north, with snow showers over the hills of northern Scotland and widespread frost expected on Friday and Saturday night.

News of the cold snap comes as British Gas revealed that 37,500 households across Britain are expected to need help to get their heating and hot water systems up and running next week. Data from the energy supplier has shown that when the minimum average daily temperature drops below 9C for several days in a row, there tends to be a tipping point when most people decide it’s time to turn the heating on. Warmer temperatures this year have resulted in a much later start to people switching on their boilers, the firm added. Simple tasks like bleeding radiators, increasing the pressure on your boiler and having it serviced can help to ensure the system is running effectively.

Hanisha Sethi