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White Christmas for parts of UK White Christmas for parts of UK
(about 4 hours later)
Snow has fallen in parts of the UK to make the first white Christmas for five years, the Met Office has confirmed.Snow has fallen in parts of the UK to make the first white Christmas for five years, the Met Office has confirmed.
An official white Christmas requires a single flake to be observed falling in the 24 hours of 25 December. The first fell in Watnall, Notts, and Glasgow. Edinburgh, Glasgow, Nottingham and Leeds were all officially "white", with the required single flake being seen falling in the 24 hours of 25 December.
Snow is forecast for Edinburgh, Cumbria and the Peak District, while 5cm (2in) could fall in Northern Ireland, south-west Scotland and northern England. Forecasters are now warning that ice could cause problems on Boxing Day.
Some 10cm could fall on high ground but much of the rest of the UK will escape. The Met Office has a dozen severe weather warnings in place for widespread icy roads in Scotland, Northern Ireland and northern England.
Ice and fog will continue to cause problems, however. The BBC weather centre said sleet and snow may have fallen elsewhere in the northern UK on Friday, but official confirmation has not yet been given of any more white Christmas locations.
There are severe weather warnings for widespread icy roads in north-east Scotland, north-east England, the Midlands, Wales and south-west England A spokesman said the weekend would generally be warmer than previous days, although mornings would still be icy in the north.
Bookmakers had been expecting to pay out on one of the nation's favourite annual wagers, with William Hill making Aberdeen the odds-on favourite to see snow at 4/6. Edinburgh and Glasgow were offered at 10/11. Temperatures are, however, set to fall once again next week, leading to a risk of further snow in some central and northern parts of the UK.
class="" href="/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/8430491.stm">White Christmas for Scotland After days of travel disruption, the Christmas Eve getaway generally passed off smoothly for motorists as weather improved across much of Britain.
The firm said it had a record 27,000 bets on a white Christmas with nearly 15,000 bets on London alone, which was set at odds of 2/1.
However, London is one of the areas now thought least likely see snow falling on Christmas Day.
A William Hill spokesman said: "We have potentially dodged a monster payout but we are still going to be watching Buckingham Palace like a hawk, as just a flake or two will decide whether we are going to have a festive season or not.
"We still expect to take a hit with snow in Scotland and Northern Ireland but are hopeful that London will miss out."
Other Hills odds were 13/8 Newcastle, Leeds and York, 7/4 Liverpool, Manchester and Lincoln; 2/1 Oxford, Norwich, Nottinghamshire, 9/4 Birmingham, Cambridge, Bristol, Cardiff, Belfast, Exeter, Dublin.
After days of travel disruption, the Christmas Eve getaway had passed off "generally smoothly" for motorists as weather improved across much of the UK.
Breakdown organisations had predicted up to 6m people could take to the roads on Christmas Eve and at one stage the AA was dealing with about 1,400 breakdowns per hour.
The Highways Agency has lifted roadworks at 44 sites until 3 January and a spokeswoman said Christmas Eve had been quieter than Wednesday.The Highways Agency has lifted roadworks at 44 sites until 3 January and a spokeswoman said Christmas Eve had been quieter than Wednesday.
Matches postponed
Andrew Howard, the AA's head of road safety, said it was possible people had waited until Christmas morning to travel.Andrew Howard, the AA's head of road safety, said it was possible people had waited until Christmas morning to travel.
He warned that even roads where ice had thawed could be dangerous.He warned that even roads where ice had thawed could be dangerous.
"The trouble is that the salt gets washed away. If it refreezes then you don't have salt on the roads and there's very little you can do about it," he said."The trouble is that the salt gets washed away. If it refreezes then you don't have salt on the roads and there's very little you can do about it," he said.
"Even if a road has been salted, it doesn't mean it's safe.""Even if a road has been salted, it doesn't mean it's safe."
The weather has wreaked havoc with the sporting calendar.The weather has wreaked havoc with the sporting calendar.
The National Hunt Boxing Day meetings at Towcester, Sedgefield, Wetherby and Market Rasen have been called off, while Wincanton and Huntingdon face late inspections.The National Hunt Boxing Day meetings at Towcester, Sedgefield, Wetherby and Market Rasen have been called off, while Wincanton and Huntingdon face late inspections.
Meanwhile, all but two of the Scottish Football League's Saturday fixtures have been postponed.Meanwhile, all but two of the Scottish Football League's Saturday fixtures have been postponed.
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Did you celebrate Christmas by swimming in freezing temperatures? Send us your stories and pictures.Did you celebrate Christmas by swimming in freezing temperatures? Send us your stories and pictures.
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