UK weather: Snow, ice and sub-zero temperatures as Arctic blast to sweep Britain over weekend

Much of the UK woke up to ice, snow and sub-zero temperatures on Friday, with weather forecasters warning the big chill will grip the country over the weekend.

A blast of cold air from the Arctic saw temperatures in Aberdeenshire plummet to -10.7C overnight, making it the UK’s coldest night of the winter so far.

The Met Office put a yellow warning in place for snow and ice in eastern England on Friday morning. Drivers were warned to look out for ice on untreated roads, and commuters were told to expect longer journey times by road, bus and train.

A yellow warning for snow was also in place across much of Wales, where roads and public transport were likely to be affected by a band of rain, sleet and up to 4cm of snow until early on Friday afternoon.

“It’s cold out there for virtually all of us – widespread frost and some icy patches as well,” said Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern. “We keep the cold air in place through the rest of the weekend and into next week. So there is potential into next week for disruptive snow once again.”

The Met Office said there are signs the frosty conditions could stick around for some time following the arrival of the cold Arctic air on Thursday. The usual driver of our weather – the jet stream – is much weaker than usual for the time of year, which leaves the UK with an increased chance of settled cold spells.

British Gas has predicted a record number of callouts for problems with heating and hot water as the icy conditions wreak havoc. The energy company said it expected to field about 81,200 callouts over the coming days across Britain.

Public Health England also issued a cold weather alert, advising people to check up on older neighbours or anyone they know with dementia or a heart and lung condition.

“All of us should be heating our homes to at least 18C, keeping up to date with weather forecasts and planning our days around them – simple steps can really help protect against the cold,” the health body stated.

Eastern England and much of Scotland will see maximum temperatures of only 3C today, but it may reach 6C in western parts of the country. Despite the chilly conditions, blue skies and sunshine will be widespread.

Clouds rolling in across the country on Friday night could be enough to stop extreme plunges in temperature overnight, resulting in a slightly milder start to the weekend. But there is still a possibility of snow in East Anglia, the Midlands and northern England on Saturday, according to the Met Office.

While temperatures are expected to reach up to 4C degrees in eastern parts of the country on Saturday, it will be milder in western areas – reaching up to 10C in places. More frost and hill snow will sweep across the UK later on Sunday.

Dan Suri, chief meteorologist at the Met Office, said it was still too early to tell whether the fall in temperatures would see a repeat of the Beast from the East snow blizzards experienced in February last year.