‘Only In The UK’: Reports Of Thundersnow Hit Britain Just A Week After Heatwave

A wave of snow, ice and hail – along with a touch of thunder – hit the UK overnight just days after a heatwave.

The influx of bad weather has particularly rocked the east of England and Scotland after a gust of Arctic air pushed temperatures down to below freezing overnight.

West Yorkshire was coated a thick layer of snow this morning, while Manchester, Durham, Midlands and East Anglia were all affected too.

According to the Guardian, Newcastle City council even issued an emergency protocol to deal with the sudden cold and to provide immediate support anyone sleeping outdoors.

Temperatures heading into the weekend are expected to get up to a maximum of 10C in an unsettling contrast to last week’s sunshine and 20C weather.

In some areas, people reported “thundersnow”, a phenomenon where it storms in cold conditions “give rise to heavy downpours of snow”, according to the Met Office.

The snowflakes can also reflect the lightning, making it look much brighter.

Here’s just a handful of clips being shared on social media showing last night’s the peculiar weather:

Understandably, the phrase “only in the UK” soon trended on Twitter as everyone expressed their exasperation at the abrupt weather change – especially as spring was expected to be fully underway by now.

It wasn’t long until people rolled out a jokey new take on how seasons actually work in the UK – with some pointing out that we are currently between “third winter” and “the pollening”, meaning “actual spring” is supposedly still some way off.

The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning as “snow and hail showers could lead to icy surfaces with possible travel disruption” for Thursday.

Then Thursday morning, the warning was extended for midnight on Friday until 10am too, due to possible snow and ice across the far southeast of England.