New weather maps show a flurry of wintry weather settling across the country in the run-up to December 25.
Forecasters predict that a five-day blizzard will usher in a chilly and white Christmas Day for regions across England, Scotland and Northern Ireland after icy conditions begin to spread on December 20.
The latest data from forecaster WXCharts shows a strong weather front sweeping across large parts of the UK, bringing snow to Scotland, the Midlands, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Temperatures could also drop to as low as -7C in some areas, with cold Arctic air and low-pressure zones set to make it a memorably wintry festive season.
Maps for Tuesday, December 24, show heavy snow decking out 10 counties across the UK, with Invernesshire, Perthshire, Northumberland, Durham, Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, Norfolk, as well as Merioneth and Denby in Wales and Country Antrim in Belfast all in for a sprinkling.
Southern regions including London, Birmingham and Cardiff are forecast for drizzle and single-digit temperatures on Christmas Day, meanwhile, with some snow possible depending on how low the mercury drops.
As the song goes, we all dream of a white Christmas – but it wouldn’t come without its fair share of travel disruption, so it’s worth keeping an eye on the forecasts when planning your festive journeys.
The Met Office’s long-range forecast for December predicts rain and blustery showers across the south, moving northwest later in the month with temperatures oscillating between colder and milder interludes.
Sleet and snow is also expected between December 23 and January 6, especially on higher ground in the north with frost and fog also likely.
However, British Weather Services founder Jim Dale has cautioned that there is still “a long way to go” until Christmas Day, with forecasts likely to “ebb and flow” in the meantime.
He also described a “dominance of high pressure coming back behind the low pressure” this week in the wake of Storm Darragh wreaking havoc across the country over the weekend.
“By the weekend, I think we’ll get more wind and high pressure will regress a bit, then you get the cold coming down, and then it will go back up again,” the veteran forecaster said.
