UK weather: Going for an outdoor pint? Get ready for a wet weekend after snow in May!
The weather over the coming days will be "giving with one hand and taking with the other", the Met Office says.
Thursday 6 May 2021 21:12, UK
It may be May, but this is the UK, and so there is no reason why it should not snow in the fifth month of the year.
Skiers have returned to the slopes in the Lake District for the first time since lockdown, and were "giddy with excitement".
But with indoor hospitality still 10 days away in England, snow seems less than ideal for those planning an outdoor pint at their local.
And while the white stuff did fall up a mountain in the Lake District - far away from the nearest pub - conditions closer to sea level are unlikely to be much better this weekend, forecasters are warning.
Though it will be warmer, it is also expected to be wet and windy.
The weather will be "giving with one hand and taking with the other", Met Office spokeswoman Nicola Maxey said.
She added: "At the weekend we've got one of these low pressure systems coming in which pushes the high pressure out of the way and allows the temperatures to rise a bit but brings some wet and windy weather.
"It pushes in from the South West on Saturday morning and by Saturday evening it will have reached as far as the north of Scotland."
Temperatures in the South East could be as high as 20C (68F) on Saturday.
But the rain may be quite heavy, and Dartmoor could see as much as 70mm of rain in the 24 hours to Saturday.
There could even be more snow.
A band of snowy showers which gave the north of Scotland a spring covering moved south overnight into Thursday to reach parts of northern England.
The Arctic bursts - along with a chance of hail and thunder - are likely to continue into Friday.
The conditions gave members of the Lake District Ski Club a chance to return to the slopes.
Club president Mike Sweeney said about 40 people went up Raise, near Helvellyn.
As well as deep snow, there were blue skies and views as far as Scotland.
"It was fabulous - people were just giddy with excitement," Mr Sweeney said.
The Met Office said most of the snow in northern England was on the highest ground and did not settle lower down.
But there were reports of some showers at low levels, including in Gateshead.
Ms Maxey said snowfall was not entirely unusual in England in May, but snow that settles is more uncommon.
The last time snow accumulated in any quantity at this time in May was in 1997, when several centimetres settled in Scotland, Wales and northern England.
It has been a similarly unseasonal 24 hours in other parts of the UK, with hail falling as far south as London and Kent on Thursday amid heavy rain showers, thunder and lightning.