UK weather forecast: Temperatures plummet as low as -2C as Britain hit by cold snap

Temperatures will remain cool during the day, climbing no higher than 12C in the south-east.

Temperatures will plummet below freezing this week as Britain is hit by a cold snap.

Many Britons will wake up to their first widespread frost of the season, with temperatures in rural areas dipping as low as -2C.

Despite the early morning chill and patches of mist and fog, the rest of the day is expected to be dry with plenty of sunshine.

Despite the sunshine, temperatures will remain cool with afternoon highs no greater than 12C expected in the south-east, the Met Office said.

There will be some cloud in western Scotland and Northern Ireland with some outbreaks of light drizzle and a gentle breeze.

Overnight cloud will descend over northern Scotland and some showers are expected. The rest of the country will stay dry as we head into Thursday.

Across the south of the country in particular there will be mist and fog, but that will make way for a lot of sunshine.

As we move to Friday, some mist and fog is expected to descend on the country and will be slow to clear.

But the sunshine is set to continue and stay dry into Saturday where further mist is expected before clearing for yet more sunshine.

The Met Office’s long range forecast says the weekend is likely to stay dry with some rain pushing south by Sunday.

For next week the forecasts states there will be “a mixture of showery rain and dry interludes, with the rain centred over western regions, and it will become very mild.”