UK weather: 'Fool's spring' fears as ice warning issued and snow hits Cheltenham festival
Cheltenham Festival has been hit by surprise snow as day two of the famous racing event gets underway.
The Met Office said race-goers could expect 'wet snow' in between showers, with sleet forecast in the area until at least 10am.
Gloucestershire Highways was among those warning race-goers to take care when travelling to the event, writing: 'We appear to have some snow this morning! If you're heading out please be careful and if you're off to Cheltenham Festival wrap up warm.'
A Met Office spokesperson said: 'Don't be surprised if you see some wet snow in some of the showers today. A temporary slight covering is possible on the grass and cars, as seen recently here in Cheltenham.'
The snow was forecast to clear up by midday, with pictures showing jockeys warming up on the gallops amid the sleet.
However, race organisers did not appear to be worried about the wintry conditions - with one official playing 'Snow is Falling' on the racecourse tannoy.
The Cheltenham snow comes just three days after the region saw sunny weather and temperatures as high as 18C on Sunday.
Parts of the UK were hotter than Barcelona and the Costa Del Sol over the weekend.
But the outlook has completely changed with the Met Office issuing a yellow weather warning for ice for parts of northern England on Thursday.
Temperatures in the area are expected to drop to below freezing by the weekend for the end of what is often called 'fool's spring'.
'Fool's spring' refers to a period of warm weather quickly followed by a cold snap, which often occurs in March or April.
A yellow warning has been issued covering parts of Yorkshire and Northumberland between 3am and 9am on Thursday, with forecasters expecting wintry showers causing ice to develop.
Merry Cheltenham. They just gave 'Snow is Falling' a blast on the public address system. Someone's got a sense of humour. pic.twitter.com/hgltB0m04M
— Richard Forristal (@R_Forristal) March 12, 2025
It could cause disruption to transport due to ice on roads and cycle paths.
Oli Claydon, a spokesman for the Met Office, said: 'Some showers came through with lower overnight temperatures last night, meaning it comes through as snow.
'We're expecting to see the same sort of regime over the next few days with showers continuing in the North East and Scotland.
'There's also a front that moves through on Friday that could bring snow over widespread areas of Scotland, and we might see some wintry showers over the highest parts of Ireland.'
After reaching a high of 19C on Sunday, daytime temperatures in London this week are set to dip to as low 9C, and around freezing at night.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Thunderstorms to bring more rain this weekend than all of May
Thunderstorms will bring more rainfall in six hours this weekend than England and Wales saw in the whole of May. The Met Office has warned that 'all areas' of Britain face torrential rain and thunder this weekend. Heavy showers would be accompanied by lightning and hail in some places, the forecaster added. Tom Morgan, a Met Office meteorologist, said 50mm of rain could fall within the space of six hours on Saturday. He said: 'That is more than what we have seen in the whole of the month of May. 'There will be some heavy downpours with thunder, lightning and hail. 'Most places are at risk of thunderstorms.' On average, England saw 33mm of rainfall in the whole of May. This was roughly half as much as usual, the forecaster said. Wales had 51mm of rainfall. Mr Morgan warned people to keep abreast of the forecasts as the weather was looking 'pretty changeable'. He said: 'There are a lot of outside events taking place this weekend. There is the potential for some disruption. 'We could see some flooding and surface water on the roads. Strong winds will mean temporary structures such as marquees could be vulnerable. 'It is welcome rain, really, for a lot of people, particularly farmers and gardeners.' On Friday night, a new weather front will bring rain and thunder for the weekend, but temperatures are set to rise next week to just above average for the time of year. Andrea Bishop, the Met Office spokesperson, said: 'The weather will be changeable for the rest of this week, with everyone likely to see some showers at some point. 'Generally, the theme is the continuation of something a bit cooler, a bit breezy at times, and a bit wet at times too. 'We are keeping an eye on a new front which looks like it will move in on Friday night, bringing rain which could be heavy, and possibly thundery at times on Saturday. 'Rainfall totals of 20-30mm are likely in places and at present, this looks like it will affect the southern half of the UK. We are keeping a close eye on this to see how it evolves over the next 24 hours or so.' Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Why sunsets will be more vibrant this week
Credit: CAMS/ECMWF Sunsets are likely to be more vibrant this week as smoke from Canadian wildfires blows across Britain. Nearly 100 wildfires have been burning out of control across Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Ontario in the past few weeks, with the provinces declaring states of emergency and 25,000 people being forced to evacuate their homes. Satellite imagery from the Copernicus weather satellite shows the smoke has crossed the Atlantic and reached Europe, with thick plumes in the atmosphere above Ireland and southern Britain. Experts said the skies may appear hazier because the sun is blocked out by the extra pollution, while sunsets could be particularly spectacular over the next few days when more smoke arrives. Nick Silkstone, a meteorologist with the Met Office, said: 'We believe the densest part of the smoke plume will remain around three kilometres above the UK, and there aren't expected to be any signs of smoke or reduced air quality at the surface. 'The main factor the public may notice from ground level is that any sunshine will be quite hazy – even in any patches of cloudless sky. 'Because the smoke particles will scatter some blue light, it is likely that the colours of sunrises and sunsets will be more vibrant than usual.' Wildfires in Canada typically begin to flare up in April and May, with the situation this year being exacerbated by moderate drought and strong winds in mid-May. Dense smoke has also spread across other Canadian provinces and the US, with 22 million Americans placed under air quality alerts last weekend. Residents have been warned smoke could reach levels that are 'unhealthy for everyone'. Mark Parrington, senior scientist at the Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service (CAMS), said: 'Up to the beginning of June, our data is showing that central regions of Canada have experienced a very intense few weeks in terms of wildfire emissions. 'This data, and the fact that we are able to observe the smoke in Europe, is a reflection of the scale of the fires and impacts they have been having in Manitoba and Saskatchewan.' Wildfire smoke is made up of gaseous pollutants such as carbon monoxide, along with water vapour and particle pollution, which can be hazardous to health if near to the ground. Dr Ailish Graham, research fellow at the University of Leeds, said: 'It's unlikely that these wildfires will have an impact on surface air quality. 'Based on model forecasts from the CAMS, the smoke transported is at higher altitudes, which is common in these kinds of episodes.' She added: 'As a result of the smoke being at high altitudes it's very unlikely that people will be exposed to the smoke, or be able to smell it.' The first smoke from Canadian fires hit Europe on May 18, but new forecasts show thicker plumes will come this week. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Number of likely days for Channel crossings double compared with previous years
Days when weather conditions are considered favourable for Channel crossings by migrants have been running at more than double the number seen in previous years, new Home Office data shows. There were 60 so-called 'red' days between January 1 and April 30 this year, when factors such as wind speed, wave height and the likelihood of rain meant crossings were classed by officials as 'likely' or 'highly likely'. Some 11,074 migrants arrived in the UK during these four months after crossing the Channel. By contrast, there were 27 red days in the same period last year, less than half the number in 2025, with 7,567 arrivals recorded – nearly a third lower than the total for this year. There were also 27 red days in the first four months of 2022, with 23 red days in 2023, with 6,691 and 5,946 arrivals in these periods, respectively. Assessments of the likelihood of migrant crossings are prepared for the Home Office by the Met Office. The assessments are colour-coded red, amber or green according tothe likelihood of activity based on environmental and other factors, including wave height, surf conditions on beaches, wind speed and direction, the chance of rain, and other weather trends. Red days mean the probability of migrant activity in the Channel is greater than 55%, with crossings classed as 'likely' or 'highly likely'. Green days are determined by the likelihood being less than 35%, with crossings 'unlikely' or 'highly unlikely'. The analysis is based on data recorded in the Dover Strait and does not consider wider factors such as the availability of dinghies. The publication comes just days after 1,195 migrants made the journey to the UK in 19 boats on Saturday, in the highest daily total recorded so far this year. The cumulative total for the year, 14,812, is the highest for the first five months of a year since data collection began in 2018. Reacting to the figures, shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: 'Labour seems to think praying for bad weather is a good border security strategy. 'This is a weak Government, with no plan to end illegal immigrants crossing the Channel. 'Blaming the weather for the highest ever crossing numbers so far this year is the border security equivalent of a lazy student claiming 'the dog ate my homework'. 'This is a clear failure for our weak Prime Minister and his weak Home Secretary.' Mr Philp also said the reason for the 'worst year in history' for Channel crossings was because the Labour government cancelled the Rwanda plan to deter migrants coming to the UK, not the weather. A Home Office spokesman said: 'This government is restoring grip to the broken asylum system it inherited that saw a whole criminal smuggling enterprise allowed to develop, where gangs have been able to exploit periods of good weather to increase the rate of crossings for too long.' The Government has vowed to crack down on people smuggling gangs, including by handing counter terror-style powers to law enforcement agencies under the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, currently going through Parliament. The spokesman added that 9,000 crossings have been prevented from the French coastline this year. Officials are understood to be pessimistic about the prospect of bringing numbers down this year, with measures not expected to start paying off until 2026. On Monday, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper told MPs the Government is pressing their French counterparts to bring in agreed changes that would allow French police to also take action in the sea when migrants climb into boats from the water. 'A French maritime review is looking at what new operational tactics they will use, and we are urging France to complete this review and implement the changes as swiftly as possible,' she said. 'I have been in touch with the French interior minister who supports stronger action again this weekend, and there are further discussions under way this week.' Elsewhere, the data shows the number of migrants arriving per boat has been on an upward trend since data was first recorded in 2018, when the average for the year was seven. It rose to 11 per boat in 2019, 13 in 2020, 28 in 2021, 41 in 2022, 49 in 2023 and 53 in 2024. So far this year, the average has been 56. Gunes Kalkan, of Safe Passage International, said the rise only increases the risk to people's lives. 'This indicates the Government's approach isn't working, as the smugglers continue to exploit the lack of safe routes for refugees, cramming more and more people dangerously on each boat,' he said. 'But let's always remember these aren't just 'numbers'. People fleeing the horrors of war and persecution are simply seeking a safe life, and often to reunite with family they were torn apart from in the chaos. 'If this Government is serious about saving lives and stopping the smugglers, it must open safe routes and expand refugee family reunion.'
