UK weather forecast: Snow and bitter temperatures set to blast Britain as cold front meets rain

Sleet and frost also forecast as winter starts to bite

Winter will arrive with force next week as snow and bitter temperatures are forecast to hit large swathes of the UK.

After a month of largely above average temperatures, rain sweeping in off the Atlantic will meet a cold front coming in from Europe - resulting in frost, sleet and snow from Tuesday onwards.

Hilly areas in Scotland and the north of England are most likely to see the white stuff. But forecasters say there’s a chance lower ground may also be hit as far south as the Midlands.

Before then, showers and wind will move east across the UK, with the north expected to feel particularly chilly – and rainy – as the weekend progresses.

The mercury will drop to about 5C in Newcastle, although it will remain relatively mild at 11C in London. Blustery conditions are predicted everywhere as the tail-end of Storm Diana passes.

Mark Wilson, meteorologist with the Met Office, told The Independent: “A bank of cloud will move east over Saturday and Sunday with rain and showers in Scotland and the north but also some drizzle and outbreaks of rain in the south.”

And he added: “On Tuesday, a cold front will bring frost and chilly temperatures in the morning; then rain coming in from the south-west is going to bump into that cold air and we will probably see some hill snow in areas above 300 or 400 metres.

“Where precisely that will be is something that will become clearer over the next day or two – it’s still a slightly muddled picture at the moment – but there’s certainly a possibility that, in the north and central England, lower lying areas will also see some snow.

“It is one to keep an eye on.”

Mr Wilson added that the weather would then stay unsettled and changeable for the rest of the week.

For England, it will be the first snow of the season – although hilly areas of Scotland experienced some last month.