Met Office issues weekend weather warning as freezing fog to sweep UK

The yellow warning is across most of England and Wales

Fog is due to develop from Friday night (Getty)

The Met Office has issued a weather warning for freezing fog to sweep parts of the UK.

The forecaster issued the warning from 2am on Saturday until 11am the same day as the changing weather is due to bring travel disruption, slower journey times and possible cancellations and delays to flights.

The warning comes as parts of the UK experienced snow and sub-zero temperatures as freezing temperatures returned to the nation.

The warning has been issued across London, north west England, south west England, south east England, Yorkshire, Wales and the West Midlands.

The Met Office said: “Freezing fog is expected to develop during Friday night and will be slow to clear in places through Saturday morning.

“Some fog could be quite dense with the visibility falling below 100 metres at times. Additionally, freezing fog may lead to some untreated surfaces becoming slippery. Western England is more likely to see freezing fog persist into late morning and in a few places into the afternoon.”

Most of England and Wales is expected to receive fog (Met Office )

The warning comes after Manchester Airport was forced to close for hours this week after heavy snow blanketed both its runways, leaving thousands of people facing travel disruption.

Temperatures plunged below -10C on the coldest night of the year so far, with 34cm of snow falling in parts of Scotland by Thursday morning.

The airport announced that the heavy snow in Manchester had forced it to close both its runways, with international arrivals diverted.

The UK is currently experiencing a cold snap (Jacob King/PA Wire)

Dozens of flights were grounded, with disruption likely set to continue through the day even though the runways reopened by 9am.

UK 5-day weather forecast:

Today:

Mostly dry with plenty of sunshine after a cold and frosty start. A few showers affecting northern Scotland and North Sea coasts of England, whilst the far southwest turns cloudier for a time. Breezy in the east, else light winds.

Tonight:

Most parts clear, especially across England and Wales where a sharp frost and some freezing fog patches will form. The far northwest turning cloudy and windy with some rain later.

Saturday:

Most of England and Wales fine and cold, though freezing fog patches may be slow to clear. Cloudy, windy and milder in the northwest with some rain at times.

Outlook for Sunday to Tuesday:

Mild, cloudy, and breezy weather with outbreaks of rain and drizzle in the northwest, slowly drifting southeast. Ahead of this, cold, dry, with occasional sunshine, and widespread overnight frosts.