First snow warning hits Scotland as Britain braces itself for for icy conditions next week

Scotland is bracing itself for frosty conditions next week, with the Met office issuing its first yellow snow warning of the season.

The weather warning covers most of northern Scotland, where heavy snow and strong northerly winds- creating some drifting and blizzard conditions- can be expected on Wednesday.

Snow up to 5cm could fall in lower areas, with up to 10cm expected at levels above 200m, the weather service said.

The Met Office warned that the snow showers might bring travel disruption, with some roads and railways likely to be affected.

The yellow warning, which is in place for the whole of Wednesday, covers Central, Tayside & Fife, Grampian, Highlands & Eilean Siar and Orkney & Shetland.

Weather maps from WXCharts suggest that some snowfall will arrive in the Scottish Highlands, parts of the Pennines and Wales early tomorrow morning.

And the whole of the UK can expect temperatures to plummet in the coming days with the arrival of a wintry storm called the ‘Troll of Trondheim’.

Forecasters say a spell of low pressure originating from Norway is expected to hit the UK, resulting in plunging temperatures.

It has been suggested that Britain will see the worst of this cold spell between December 10 and 15.

As temperatures drop, bookies are slashing the odds on a white Christmas, with Ladbrokes offering 6-4 on there being snowfall anywhere in the UK on December 25.

The last widespread white Christmas in the UK was 2010, when 83 per cent of weather stations recorded snow on the ground – last year it was just 1 per cent.