Summer? What summer? Britain "colder than the Antarctic"

Getty

A blast of Arctic air is forcing temperatures to plummet so low that some parts of the UK will be colder than the Antarctic and Arctic Circles.

While British beaches and parks are normally springing into life at around time of year, most will be either too cold or too wet to visit.

Getty

According to the Met Office forecast, there will be a north-south divide until next week. While the north will be drier, temperatures will be well below the average for May, while the south will be slightly warmer but wetter.

This weekend, London and the south will see highs of around 19C, with heavy rain throughout. Meanwhile, in the Cairngorms National Park Scotland, temperatures of -3C are forecast, with some sunny spells. The north east of England will see temperatures struggling to get into double figures.

Tourists make the most of a brief sunny spell in Wales/PA

May's normal temperatures reach 16C, but the mercury will struggle to get into double figures in the north, with highs of just 9C predicted.

Gloucester earlier this month/Getty

While temperatures reached -5C in Scotland and -1C in Dorset, the Arctic town of Berlevag, one of Europe's most northerly settlements, experienced temperatures of 16C this week, according to a report in the Daily Telegraph.

And the long-term outlook is not looking any better. The Met Office forecasts that although the beginning of June may be more settled, there are signs of cooler more unsettled weather further into the month.

Forecasting website weatheronline predicts an "elusive" summer.

%VIRTUAL-Gallery-151351%