Temperatures could drop as low as -6C in some parts of the UK this weekend thanks to a blast of cold air from the Arctic, the Met Office has said.
Forecasters have warned the more wintry conditions could mean it’s time for most of us to fetch the big coat from the cupboard over the next few of days.
It’s also bad news for anyone hoping to get another glimpse of the Northern Lights with cloud cover largely ruling out a repeat of the spectacular light shows over parts of the country this week.
Today is set to be the wettest day of the weekend, particularly for parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland, while rain will also be pushed into areas in northern England later on.
Met Office meteorologist Jonathan Vautrey said: ‘For everyone we’re going to be feeling rather cold.
‘Over the last day or so we have drawn in quite a bit of cold air from the Arctic and that is sort of staying with us right throughout the weekend, so most of us will need a little bit of a coat on around at times.’
On Saturday, highs of around 7 to 8C are expected in parts of Scotland.
It’ll be slightly milder at around 12C in northern England and Northern Ireland, with southern England forecast to enjoy the warmest temperatures of up to 16C, he added.
Sunday morning will be off to a chilly start with temperatures as low as -4C to -6C in some sheltered parts of Scotland.
There could also be frosty conditions in rural areas in northern England, Northern Ireland and Wales, according to the weather service.
Temperatures in southern England are forecast to be between 7 to 10C that day, considerably lower than the October average of around 15C.
Scotland will also be colder than usual, with temperatures of around 5 to 6C, around half of what is expected or this time of year, the forecaster added.
Mr Vautrey continued: ‘For everyone, whilst it will be drier than Saturday, it is certainly going to be feeling quite, quite cold out there spots sunshine around at times.
‘The best of the brightness is going to be further towards the east – eastern Scotland, eastern England, with cloud generally building from the west as we head throughout the day and there is the potential that we do start to see a little bit more rain arrive for Northern Ireland into the evening period, and that sort of heralds return to slightly more unsettled conditions as we head into the start of the new week.’
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