Forecasters warn of cold snap next week with chance of snow in north

Make the most of it while you still can! Britain is set for ANOTHER day of sunshine after temperatures hit 20C on Saturday – but forecasters warn of cold snap next week with chance of SNOW in the north

The glorious sunshine is set to continue on Sunday with temperatures reaching 65F in some parts of the UK
Clocks went forward to British Summer Time (BST) today at 1am meaning this weekend is shortest of the year
Sun will be short lived as weather will get colder next weekend with temperatures set to drop below freezing

Britons are set for another day of glorious sunshine after temperatures hit 20C on Saturday in parts of the UK – but forecasters have warned of a ‘cold snap’ next week.

The weather is set to be warm and sunny today before temperatures dip below freezing next week – with northern parts of the UK plummeting to as low as –3C in isolated rural areas, according to the Met Office.

Despite some mist and fog earlier this morning, forecasters have said today will remain dry across much of the country with patches of warm sunshine reaching up to 18C in the southwest, before becoming ‘unsettled’ in the coming weeks.

Meteorologists believe snow could fall in parts of the UK with more wintry rain and wind on the way first for parts of the north and east.

A cold front will strike, bringing a mixture of rain, sleet and snow towards the southwest, with flurries of snow also predicted.

Despite some mist and fog earlier this morning, forecasters have said today will remain dry across much of the country with patches of warm sunshine reaching up to 18C in the southwest

Early morning dip: Swimmers brace the cold water yesterday to play with a ball in the sea at Cullercoats Bay on the north east coast

Pictured: A fishing boat heads out to sea from Tynemouth on the north east coast of England yesterday morning

Rise and shine: The early morning sunshine made for ideal weather for a morning run at Bournemouth Beach on Saturday

People walk about Bournemouth Beach, enjoying strolls along the shore as a warm and clear Saturday begins the weekend

People sunbathing and laying down on Bournemouth Beach yesterday as a warmer clear sky to the weekend sees a mini-heatwave

Met Office Chief Meteorologist Paul Gundersen said: ‘Although the UK has had a good deal of fine and settled March weather in recent days, a change is on the way from the middle of next week with colder air spreading down from the north and the increasing likelihood of rain for most areas.

‘On the hills in the north, there’s a chance of this falling as snow, although we’ll gain more certainty on that in the coming days.

‘With the influence of some unsettled weather, we’ll be seeing a marked drop in temperatures for most with colder air arriving from the north. This will see maximum temperatures drop into single figures for many areas, and below freezing overnight.’

By Tuesday, unsettled and cooler weather is set to hit the UK, with patchy low cloud drawn in off the North Sea – hitting coastal areas.

Fellow forecaster Craig Snell said: ‘Next week will certainly be more on the cloudy side rather than the sunny side, and this time of year when we don’t have the sunshine, it’s not going to feel as warm.

‘Certainly next week is going to be colder but it’s not looking like it’s going to be drastically, drastically colder’.

He added: ‘Certainly very different to this week, but it’s spring.

‘Spring’s a fickle season, it gives you one thing one week and then the next week it will give you something very different, that’s what keeps us on our toes’.

Looking ahead to April, temperatures are expected to recover to average levels in the first days of the month, which looks set to be ‘less settled’ and more changeable overall, Mr Snell said.

Paddleboarders wearing blue and yellow in the River Stour in Christchurch, Dorset, as part of the Paddle for Peace event on Saturday

Pictured: A family get in an early game of football before the huge crowds arrive at Bournemouth Beach this morning

Britons were out bright and early this morning in a bid to make the most of the sunniest weekend of the year so far on Saturday. Pictured: Swimmers leave the water after taking a dip at Cullercoats Bay on the north east coast

Weather is heating up on Bournemouth Beach as residents make most of the weather and clear blue skies for a mini-heatwave

Pictured: People headed to Bournemouth Beach to soak up the sunshine this weekend ahead of a colder week next week

‘We are probably going to be back to what people generally expect the weather in the UK to be like, every day different’, he said.

‘Most places will probably see some rain which some of us haven’t really seen a lot of this week’.

With a week of March still to go, the UK has already seen the amount of sunshine it would usually expect for the whole month.

Much of the country is also far drier than usual, with Britons making the most of the sunniest weekend so far.

Met Office meteorologist Alex Deakin said: ‘It may well be the shortest weekend of the year, because the clocks go back, but it will be one of the sunniest.

‘It’s going to be blue skies almost across the board on both Saturday and Sunday thanks to a chunky area of high pressure that’s just wobbling around across the UK.’

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