As Britain shivers, can it really be almost May?
PERHAPS it serves us right for being so smug about how sunny spring has been so far, proving pride comes before a snowfall.
But as this chilly-looking chap at the snowy Hartside Pass in Cumbria shows, the warm weather has definitely beaten a retreat across much of the country.
A wintry blast swept Britain to remind us that – despite what we might have thought – summer is still some way away.
And what’s worse, the cold snap could last four weeks, forecasters said last night.
Glorious spring weather has been replaced by a blanket of frost down to Devon, with sleet and snow on high ground in the North.
Temperatures dropped to -3C (27F) on Great Dun Fell in the Lake District and -1.2C (30F) in Oxfordshire and in Herefordshire – colder than Antarc-
‘Spring gardens could suffer’
tica, where lows at US research base Palmer Station were only 1C (3 F).
The frosts melted away as the sun rose, but conditions will remain below average.
Although some of the South enjoyed a dry, sunny day – such as Brighton, where sun-worshippers basked on the beach – it was a far cry from the start of the month when temperatures hit the mid-20s.
The frosty nights are likely to ‘clobber’ gardens, experts warned last night. Matthew Oates, nature specialist at the National Trust, said: ‘These frosts mean there is a real chance of spring gardens suffering.’
The dramatic change is due to a so-called ‘Arctic plunge’ – a mass of dry, freezing air blowing in from the far north. The wind is expected to head north-west, bringing a band of cold rain across the country, with the Met Office warning of ‘unstable weather’ over the coming bank holiday weekend.