Britain is set to be battered by an Arctic blast leaving eight inches of snow.
Life-threatening conditions and travel chaos are expected as temperatures plunge to -8C across parts of the North, Wales and Scotland.
The Met Office is predicting heavy snow in the Pennines today (December 4), with the Lake District, Peak District, Snowdonia and higher ground in Scotland also affected.
Forecasters say it could be the beginning of a severe winter chill, with 12 days of snow possible in the run-up to Christmas.
The bitterly cold spell is also expected to last into the new year.
Even areas that avoid freezing temperatures could be hit by rain and sleet as two separate storms bear down on the country this week.
Flood alerts have already been issued for parts of England and heavy downpours are expected to batter the south-east, north-west, Midlands and East Anglia.
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Met Office forecaster Dean Hall told the Daily Star: “Travel conditions could be nasty over the Pennines, with possible blizzards and drifts.
“We could see 10cm and possibly 20cm of snow on the highest Pennines.”
Met Office meteorologist Aidan McGivern told the Daily Express that frost and ice in western Scotland could cause treacherous conditions.
Read more: Channel 5 really annoyed viewers by allowing snow to disrupt telly faves
He said: “Some slippery surfaces about if you are tackling some of the roads and pavements. Watch out for those and the ice warnings in force.”
The remnants of Storm Etienne is due to arrive by this evening, bringing wintry showers as it combines with cold air from the north.
A second storm system is predicted to land on Friday, unleashing torrential rain and strong winds.
Ladbrokes, meanwhile, is offering odds of 10/1 of a white Christmas — snow falling on December 25.
And the worst may be yet to come as weather experts predict 12 days of snow around Christmas and into January, with the worst likely to be on higher ground.
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