Snow in London: capital set for another covering tonight... and a weekend of rain

Londonders are facing a final flurry of snow tonight - and then heavy rain will hit the capital as the big thaw sets in.

The city and the South East have been issued with a yellow “be prepared” warning by the Met Office with up to 5cm of snow expected to fall overnight in Essex and Hertfordshire, potentially causing problems at Stansted and Luton airports.

Forecasters said central London was also likely to see a light covering of snow by tomorrow morning, although a mixture of sleet and rain would move in by midday.

A spokesman for the Met Office said: “It’s a case of one more dose of wintry weather to come before some milder weather on Sunday and Monday.

“The heavier snow will be further north in East Anglia, the east and north of England and in Scotland.”

Temperatures could reach 7C by tomorrow afternoon and 9C on Sunday but the weekend will will feel colder because stiff breezes will create a wind chill factor,

And the milder weather will quickly be replaced with heavy rain by tomorrow night and into Sunday, increasing the risk of flooding in areas where there are large amounts of thawing snow.