UK weather forecast: Met Office issues warnings over 70mph winds as snow set to return

Forecasters warn of large waves, disruption to travel and power cuts

Winds of up to 70mph are set to batter Britain before snow returns at the end of the month, forecasters have warned.

Weather warnings have been issued by the Met Office for large swathes of the UK from 10pm Wednesday until Thursday morning and much of Friday and Saturday.

Heavy rain is also predicted for Scotland at the end of the week and into the weekend.

Gales could cause large waves, disruption to travel and power cuts, Met Office forecaster Alex Burkill warned.

Rain is also expected for much of the country on Wednesday night, especially in the South and South East, before it pushes west later on.

“The biggest issue is the strong winds; they are really going to be strengthening Wednesday evening," Mr Burkill told The Independent. “The windiest places will be will be South coastal parts and the South West, where we are likely to see gusts of 60-70mph. Across the bulk of the country we could get gusts of 50mph in the early hours of Thursday.

“It won’t be a particularly cold night. Most places will be around 6-7C but there’s likely to be some snow mixed in with the rain over the hills in Scotland.”

While Thursday will be drier and less windy with highs of about 9-10C, the weather will become more unsettled on Friday "with rain for most places, which could be heavy at times," Mr Bukhill said.

He also warned of "very strong winds for most of the UK of up to 50-60mph and exposed parts seeing gusts of 70mph."

The unsettled weather will continue into Saturday, turning more settled on Sunday, he said.

There will be highs of 12C on Friday, 11C Saturday and 9C Sunday, although it could feel colder in the wind.

Temperatures are expected to stay around average or slightly above for much of February, although snow could return at the end of the month.

“With those wind speeds we are likely to get some large waves and inland there may be some tree branches blowing around,” Mr Burkill said. “People need to be aware there’s likely to be some disruption to travel and there could be some power cuts and other utilities could be affected. As we go through much of February it looks like temperatures will stay around or above normal however towards the end of the month into March there are hints that we could end up with some snow.”

The forecaster said the latest storm has not yet been named – but it has not been ruled out.