Snow, ice and -8C temperatures: Britain prepares for Arctic blast

Met office warns of 'horrendous' conditions

Blustery and wintry weather will sweep across Britain this week bringing fears of disruption and travel chaos.

The Met Office issued warnings for snow, ice and wind, and forecaster Calum MacColl said this week will see the UK suffer the "first notable north-westerly blast of the year".

Mr MacColl warned to expect unsettled weather, saying: "The wind will make it feel pretty raw".

A Met Office yellow warning for snow and ice was in place overnight from Sunday to Monday, with wintry showers expected in Scotland in particular. Snow is expected to fall over hills and to low levels in the north.

The icy weather could mean further disruption to transport after motorists in Scotland were urged today to avoid part of the main route to the Highlands.

Mr MacColl said people should take "extra precautions with regard to icy patches".

Tonight is expected to be the coldest of the week, especially in central and eastern areas.

Leon Brown, meteorologist at The Weather Channel UK predicts widespread frost tonight with lowest temperatures over central Scotland, where there is snow on the ground, down to minus 5 or 6C. 0 to minus 2C for Wales and central England, but could dip to minus 3 or 4C in East Anglia by dawn.

It will be a wet and windy start tomorrow in the north-west of the UK with many places frosty and a band of rainy and very windy conditions sweeping south-eastwards throughout the day.

There is a further warning in place for wind on Wednesday and overnight into Thursday.

The Met Office is telling people in North Wales, Northern England, Scotland and Northern Ireland to expect severe gales with gusts of around 70 mph and frequent wintry showers.

Mr MacColl said: "Northern and western areas will probably see some thunder and hail and also snow across the hills."

He warned that the weather is likely to be squally with strong winds and advised people to keep up to date with the latest forecasts.

Rachel Vince from MeteoGroup said: "It's a very windy and unsettled week with cold and wintry showers."

She added: "The winds could be disruptive at times."

Mr Brown from Weather Channel UK said the best of the weather over the Midlands and south east with mainly dry and clearer conditions until Sunday evening.

"Thursday looks the most troublesome day of the week as a secondary area of low pressure tracks eastward on a more southerly track across central or northern Britain. This threatens gales on Thursday night with rain over the south, but a risk of heavy snowfalls across Scotland", he added.

A Met Office spokesman said it was too early to predict a white Chistmas, reports the Evening Standard.

He added: "It does look as though the unsettled weather theme will continue, but we can't really pin down any detail about the actual weather type on Christmas day itself. At this stage it's still a long way away before we could give precise detail."

However, according to the Mirror, bookies have now slashed the odds on a White Christmas this year. Ladbrokes offered 7/2 in Glasgow, 9/2 in Manchester and 5/1 in London.