A surprise burst of snow is set to carpet Britain tonight with up to three inches falling from western Scotland to London while temperatures plunge to as low as -10C.
Forecasters say the shock weather comes as a knock-on effect of Hurricane Alex in the Atlantic, which is pushing mild air from the west into conflict with cold air coming from the east, causing an outbreak of the white stuff.
It means there will be two bouts of snow over London within three days as experts believe a weather system bound for the capital on Monday will still come in regardless of the current conditions.
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This may look like a scene from the Alps or the Himalayas, but it is actually Pen Y Fan in Wales covered by snow
A pair of women enjoy sledging down the side of a hill in Brecon Beacons National Park, pictured, where snow has fallen
The mountain range in South Wales, pictured, has become a popular destination today for people looking to enjoy the snow
Oliver Bunn and William Bunn, pictured make the most of the snowy surroundings as they make snow angels at Pen Y Fan
The Met Office has issued yellow 'be prepared' warnings for almost all of England and most of Scotland, with snow predicted to hit London some time this evening.
A spokesman said: 'It's a very complex weather pattern. This is a knock-on effect of Hurricane Alex, which has had a big impact. It's caused an awkward situation between very cold air coming from the east and mild air from the west.
'It looks as if the cold air will win out and this outbreak will gradually move south over the UK with up to five to 10cm possible in Scotland, 5cm in the Peak District and then perhaps around 3cm falling over London.'
Snow covers Glasgow Green park, pictured, in the east end of Glasgow, on the north bank of the River Clyde
Two hikers watch a glorious sunrise over the horizon at Pen Y Fan, pictured, as they walk along the snow-topped hills
Dylan Court, one, pictured, of Swansea, lays on a bodyboard as his mother Jennifer, pulls him along in the snow in the Brecon Beacons
A man makes sure he can keep memories of the snow at Pen Y Fan, Wales, pictured, for a lifetime on his camera
Traffic at Pen Y Fan is moving very slowly on the A470, pictured, as so many families have come out to make the most of the snow
Fields in Buxton in the Peak District, pictured, have also been covered after wintry showers in the past 48 hours
He added temperatures would plunge to as low as -10C tonight, although they will improve in the coming days with parts of the south 'enjoying' above freezing lows of between 2-to-4C on Sunday and Monday nights.
The emergence of the Atlantic hurricane has also come as a surprise to experts, with 'hurricane season' in the area usually between June and November, according to CNN.
The tropical storm hit Portugal's Azores islands on Friday morning with winds reaching 85mph, before heading north towards Greenland.
Met Office experts have also warned of the threat of difficult driving conditions from sleet and snow.
With largely clear skies and no cloud cover, the public are being urged to take care on untreated roads and paths hit by frost.
A man captures the stunning image of the sun emerging over the snow-topped horizon at Pen y Fan, South Wales, pictured
Vehicles are lining the sides of the A470, pictured, at Brecon Beacons, where one man makes a quick change into more suitable footwear
Saturday is forecast to be frosty but many areas will stay dry and enjoy sunny spells. Wintry showers will persist in eastern areas.
Rural parts of the Highlands and Aberdeenshire will face the lowest temperatures, forecasters said, while around 5cm to 10cm (2-4in) of snow could fall on higher ground.
Traffic Scotland has issued warnings of icy conditions throughout much of the country, but snow lovers have been promised a great day on the slopes.
The Met Office added: 'Ice may prove an additional hazard in places. Please be aware of the potential for some travel disruption and difficult driving conditions.
The scene at Pen Y Fan in Wales, pictured, could easily be from some epic Hollywood film
A man watches a picturesque scene unfold at Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, pictured, with fields covered in the white stuff
Steam pours out of factory chimneys in Buxton but temperatures are set to plummet tonight to as low as -10C
A beautiful winter's morning at Chatsworth House, pictured, in Derbyshire where temperatures fell to -4C this morning
'A frontal zone moving eastwards into Britain on Saturday will run into and stall against the cold air mass which became established over the UK earlier in the week.
'This allows rain at the leading edge of this frontal zone to turn to snow and persist for several hours before the frontal zone weakens during Sunday, allowing less cold conditions to start developing and some of the snow to start melting.
'This snow is expected to fall along a relatively narrow corridor, perhaps only 100 miles wide, which means that some areas within the warning area may escape much of the snow.
'Meanwhile, where snow is limited or rain occurs instead, icy stretches may develop on untreated roads as rain and snow starts.'
Nevis Range ski resort said it is 'looking like a great day' and said it expects to be busy over the weekend, with good skiing right across the front of the hill and a mix of groomed and un-groomed runs.
Glencoe said it 'should be a cracking weekend for snow sports with light winds and great snow conditions'.
Frost and snow are still covering ground in the village of Litton, pictured, in the Peak District today
Snowy fields can be seen on the horizon from Litton, pictured, in the Peak District, basking in glorious sunshine
Clive Steer, pictured left, takes dog Harvey for a walk with a friend in frost-covered Leatherhead in Surrey, pictured
Up to 5cm of snow, or around 2ins, could fall in the Peak District today, pictured, with as much as 3ins possible in Scotland
Cairngorm reports that all open terrain has mostly good cover of packed powdery dry snow, while most runs are complete with pisted packed snow at Glenshee.
It comes after residents in the Peak District, Manchester, Scotland and Birmingham have all seen white scenes in the past 48 hours while Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Devon also experienced a drop in temperatures on Friday with up to three inches of snow falling in places.
Photographs showed families battling through deep snow in Princetown while icicles formed around Hellbeck waterfall in Cumbria due to the sudden cold spell.
Conditions were so cold on Friday that skiers and snowboarders were able to take to Blencathra mountain in the Lake District.
Stunning images captured by photographer Stuart Holmes show up to a dozen people enjoying the snow.
A cold and frosty start to the day in Wilmslow, Cheshire, pictured, does not deter golfers from getting a round of 18 in
Temperatures are set to fall as low as -10C in the UK as snow approaches a large swathe of the country today
The sun rises over the River Trent in Gunthorpe, Nottinghamshire, as clouds hover overhead with snow expected later today
Meanwhile, extreme winter weather conditions caused 33 crashes in just a few hours in Bedfordshire, police said.
Overnight emergency calls to officers following the spate of crashes peaked at breakfast-time as temperatures plummeted and roads became icy.
Sussex Roads Police attempted to prevent incidents with the force offering its advice to drivers via Twitter.
Officers wrote: 'Do you fancy testing your airbags/abs/seat belt today? If so, drive as normal. If not, please drive to suit the freezing conditions.'
The force described 'bedlam' on the roads as people skidded and crashed on the ice. One car ended up in a garden around 5.30am after the driver lost control while in Cardiff a driver caused significant damage to his £200,000 Ferrari after crashing it into a neighbour's house.
Hurricane Alex, bottom left, is pushing mild air into conflict with cold air from the east, causing an outbreak of snow over the UK
A graph by MetDesk showing where and how much snow in centimetres will fall over the UK by 6am Sunday morning
Fleets of gritters were out in Cornwall with one traffic officer describing the conditions as 'lethal'.
The officer added: 'It would help if people got up a bit sooner in these conditions to allow extra time to get to work.
'The roads are lethal so obviously you have to drive more slowly - if people set off at the same time as usual they are under pressure to keep to their normal speed when in fact they should be allowing a longer time to be safe.'
Meanwhile, an 18-strong fleet of gritters - named by schoolchildren - made their way out onto the roads of East Sussex in a bid to prevent accidents.
This NASA satellite image shows snow already over Scotland and north England, with weather moving south as the day goes on
The three-day weather forecast, pictured, predicts a blanket of snow across England today, with more to come on Monday evening
Snow is heading for London with the Met Office issuing yellow weather warnings for much of the country. Right, people enjoy the snow at Brecon Beacons National Park
Met Office: Jet stream change has caused recent cold weather.
