New weather maps show snow is set to be dumped on parts of Britain over more than three days while Christmas Day looks set to be the warmest in almost 10 years. Parts of Scotland look set for snow from Wednesday (December 27) until Saturday (December 30), according to charts generated today (December 25) by WX Charts.
Much of Scotland and possibly part of northern England will see snow from about 3am on Wednesday, with between 2-10cm falling per hour, WX Charts shows.
This will clear later in the day, but snow persists over central Scotland by around 9pm and south of Edinburgh as we head into Thursday (December 28).
Parts of Sutherland and Ross & Cromarty will see snowfall along with areas in Inverness-shire, Aberdeenshire, Pertshire and Angus also seeing snow, according to WX Charts.
Outbreaks of snow will continue into Friday (December 29) and Saturday with between 2-3cm falling per hour over central Scotland at 6am. The snow is set to clear by midday, WC Charts shows.
The Met Office‘s national forecast for this week sees some snow in the north-east, with much of Britain brighter and showery on Thursday and Friday, though windy, especially in the south. There will be further hill snow in the north, according to the forecaster.
Meanwhile, Christmas Day is set to be the warmest in almost a decade, with forecasters predicting highs of 14C.
Dreams of a White Christmas have been shattered for most of Britain, with “very mild” temperatures continuing after the country saw its warmest December 24 for more than 20 years.
Some areas in northern Scotland are likely to see some snow, technically making it a White Christmas, which is defined by the Met Office as a single snowflake falling on December 25.
Predicted highs of 13 to 14C in London and south-east England would make it the mildest Christmas Day since 2016, when temperatures reached 15.1C. The average maximum temperature for December is 7C.
Forecaster Dan Stroud said: “It’s unlikely to be a record-breaker in terms of warmth but still very mild nevertheless.
“The reason for that is we’re drawing our weather from the mid-Atlantic which is typically a very warm direction for us.”
Christmas Day will be “damp and miserable” for much of England and Wales, while northern areas, Scotland and Northern Ireland are forecast to have a mix of sunny spells and showers.
It comes after temperatures in Heathrow, south-west London, and Cippenham, Berkshire, hit 15.3C on Sunday, making it the warmest Christmas Eve since 1997.
Wind speeds of up to 70mph were recorded in Scotland, reaching 60mph in the north-east of England.
The warmest December 25 on record was 15.6C in 1920, while the highest Christmas Eve temperatures of 15.5C were set in Aberdeen and Banff in Scotland in 1931.
As we head into the final few days of 2023, the picture looks unsettled, with showers or longer spells of rain across many parts of the UK, according to the Met Office.
It expects some snow is possible at times, but this will probably be confined to high ground in the north.
