New Year’s Eve is expected to be the warmest on record, forecasters say after regions of Britain saw snow across the Christmas weekend.
The Met Office said that today will see plenty of dry weather in the northern parts of Britain, but the midlands and south are facing extremely wet weather conditions after a somewhat cloudy start.
They warned of a murky and foggy start to the day in England, advising drivers to use their fog lights, not their full beam lights, and to de-mist their windscreen as motorists make long journeys across the country after seeing their families for the holidays.
After a nippy start to the week today, temperatures will remain very mild this week but are set to reach a comfortable 59F (15C) on Friday in parts of England, meaning the country will enjoy similar conditions to those in southern European hotspots like Madrid and Athens.
It will also mean the 2011 record of 58F (14.8C) in Colwyn Bay, North Wales would be broken, making this New Year’s Eve the hottest on record.
A Met Office graphic displayed predictions of 15C in the south, falling to about 13C in the midlands and 10C in the north of Scotland for the last day of 2021. Forecasters said that New Year’s Eve should be drier and slightly brighter than the rest of the week – still extremely mild for many.
It comes after a chilly Boxing Day which saw up to four inches of snow falling on high ground in the early hours with heavy flurries across southern Scotland, Durham, Northumberland, Yorkshire and the Peak District.
The Met Office had declared an official White Christmas after two measuring stations in Scotland registered snowfall on Christmas Day.
One woman was spotted riding a horse in snow-blanketed woods in County Durham, but the blizzards disrupted major roads in the North, including the M62 and A66, which had to be temporarily closed in the morning due to icy conditions.
Some drivers struggled to get going at all after their cars were left concealed in dense snow.
However, the nippy weather was no match for fearless swimmers at Perranporth Beach in Cornwall, and at Ayr, south-west Scotland.
Some sported jolly Santa hats and tinsel as they braved the icy sea.
By yesterday afternoon, much of the snow was melting, the Met Office said, and more temperate air from the Atlantic provided better temperatures than average for this time of the year.
THE MONTHLY MOSQUITO 