UK Weather: First white Christmas in five years on the cards as temperatures plunge to -2C

BRITAIN could see its first white Christmas in five years as temperatures plunge to -2C today.

It will be the first snowfall in the UK on December 25 since 2015, with the north west being braced with the chilliest spell.

⚠️ Read our UK weather live blog for the very latest news and forecasts.

The Met Office has issued severe ice warnings for the east of Scotland and east of England on the big day - stretching from Newcastle to Essex.

And temperatures were expected to plunge overnight, with lows of -4C in northern England and Scotland and -2C and -3C further south.

Met Office forecaster Marco Petagna told The Sun Online: "There is a potential [for snow] during the early hours - certainly between midnight we could get a few wintry showers falling which could contain a bit of snow."

Mr Petagna said the areas most likely to see a glimpse of the white stuff are "the north Yorkshire moors down into Lincolnshire, Norfolk and a bit on the mountains in Scotland later tonight and briefly tomorrow morning".

Edinburgh and Newcastle were yesterday tipped among the cities most likely to see the white stuff on Christmas Day, with bookies placing their odds for snowfall at 2-1.

The odds for snow in Birmingham, Leeds, Manchester and Liverpool, stood at 3-1, suggesting they are more likely to have a white Christmas than cities further south.

The white stuff fell across parts of the UK yesterday, with a blanket of snow covering Tynemouth Beach in the North East and parts of County Durham.

Amid the temperature drop people were pictured getting in the spirit of a somewhat different Christmas this year.

Brave souls ran into the chilly waves near Edinburgh and Swansea today for a festive swim, while others took on the snowy roads in County Durham.

Any snow will be mainly confined to higher ground, but forecasters predictions of more snow today have rung true already.

Temperatures have been plunging this week and are set to get colder over the next 24 hours.

Met Office forecaster Bonnie Diamond said: "Showers will begin to turn wintry down the east coast on Christmas Eve.

"Parts of the north east, including Newcastle and further down into Hull and East Anglia will be affected.

"It will be cold enough for snow with temperatures falling to around 3C.

"There is also a chance we'll see snow on Christmas Day too. It won't be heavy or widespread but we could see some."

It will be the first White Christmas since 2015 when only a smattering of weather stations recorded snowfall.

The last big blitz was in 2010 during the coldest December for 100 years.

Bookies already have a white Christmas as odds-on with Newcastle and Edinburgh the most likely cities to see flakes at 2-1.

But the expected flurries on the big day are expected to be isolated to the north - with the south remaining dry and settled.

The snow warning came as heavy downpours swept the country yesterday, with up to 3in of rain falling in places.

The Met Office issued a 24-hour yellow rain warning for the whole of the South.

The Environment Agency also announced 10 flood warnings and nearly 100 flood alerts, with Gloucestershire set to be hardest hit.

A wind warning covering England and Wales is also in place for Boxing Day and Sunday.