Snow fell across many parts of Britain today, leaving commuters and Christmas shoppers facing the prospect of widespread disruption in coming days. The south of England saw its first snow of winter as Britain braced itself for temperatures predicted to plunge as low as -6C.
Forecasters predicted some parts of London and the Home Counties could see up to 8ins - or 20cm - in the next few days.
They warned the heavy snowfall predicted for Friday could cause commuter chaos across the region
Walkies: A woman heads off over the snow-decked ground in Richmond Park, Central London, with her dogs
Jamie Oliver and a friend took the TV chef's daughter Petal Blossom Rainbow for a walk in the snow near his North London home today
Winter wonderland: Skaters enjoy the winter weather at Somerset House Ice Rink in LondonThe AA said that motorists across Britain could face difficulties as only half of all local authorities had salt stocks for gritting roads that would last for six days of continuous freezing weather.
Although no weather-related problems were immediately reported on London's transport network, bosses will be eager to avoid a repeat of the major disruption caused by previous cold snaps.
Met Office spokeswoman Sarah Holland said there could be transport disruptions later in the week as the snow became heavier and urged people to keep up to date with forecasts: 'Anyone driving should be keeping up to date with traffic and highway updates and looking at our website and the BBC'.
She added the snow would settle later in the week and may cause disruption for rail networks: 'It has started to settle in places today with the temperatures below freezing, it was -7.5 degrees at Charlwood, near Gatwick Airport overnight.
A police officer stands outside the Prime Minister's home as snow falls in central London'The maximum temperature across most of London and the south east was around one degree today.'
Temperatures dropped to -6C in some rural areas overnight, thanks to an icy blast from Siberia.
Tonight is also expected to be cold although increased cloud cover will prevent temperatures falling as low as last night.
More snow is expected in central and eastern areas of the UK tomorrow with rural parts of Kent and East Anglia the most likely locations for a snowball fight
Cars edge past each other in Essex this morning as snow began to fall in the South for the first time this year
As snow falls, a stag takes stock in Richmond Park
Cutting a lone figure, a woman runs through the early morning frost in a park in LondonMore snow is expected later this week with many areas seeing a dusting of flakes by Saturday night.
‘It's looking bitterly cold for at least a week,’ said forecaster Paul Mott, also from MeteoGroup, adding that it was too early to predict whether it will be a white Christmas.
The prospect of December snowfalls comes after one of the wettest Novembers on record, with downpours causing widespread flooding and chaos.
If the cold snap continues towards Christmas there are fears for salt stocks to keep roads clear in some parts of the country.
This barn owl looked bewildered by the snow as he tried to stay warm in Chessington World of Adventures and Zoo in Surrey today
It's not only England suffering from cold temperatures in the run up to Christmas. In Siberia, more than 5,000 reindeer gathered together in an attempt to stay warm Half of local authorities have salt stocks to deal with iced-up roads that would last just six days of continuous freezing weather, according to the AA.
The organisation's president Edmund King said he had sought assurances from the Local Government Association there would not be a repeat of the February snow chaos on the roads.
He said local authorities' reliance on supermarket-style 'just in time' deliveries left too many of them vulnerable.
Mr King said: 'Around 1,000 people are killed or seriously injured on snowy and icy roads each winter and hospital casualty departments are often inundated with people who have slipped and fallen.
'Investing in ice and snow clearance, to save elsewhere down the line, makes total sense.'
Forecast: Slow flurries are expected today, left, with warnings of more tomorrow
The BBC's five-day forecast shows a mixture of snow, sleet and sunshinesource: dailymail