More snow is set to sweep across the nation in the next 24 hours as weather forecasters predicted the coldest night of the year so far.
People across the UK woke up to wintry scenes on Tuesday morning, with the mercury dropping to a chilly -7.6C in one tiny UK hamlet last night as the cold snap began.
Altnaharra in the Scottish Highlands recorded the temperature late on Monday, with the small settlement covered in 12cm (4.7in) of snow overnight - more than anywhere else in the UK.
More than 10cm of snow fell in other parts of northern Scotland, leading to some road and school closures, while around two to three centimetres of snow also settled south of the border across Northumberland and North Yorkshire.
Fun-seekers flocked to the hills with their sledges in hand in the North East as they took advantage of the heavy snow, with a number of schoolchildren pictured racing down the makeshift slopes in North Tyneside on Tuesday morning.
Wild swimming enthusiasts up the coast in Blyth were also seen braving the wintry conditions in their beachwear as they ventured out for a morning dip despite sub-zero temperatures.
Conditions are expected to get even colder in the hours ahead, as meteorologists warn that dangerous lows of below minus 10 degrees are likely tonight.
A BBC Weather forecast predicts -13C in the town of Aviemore in the Scottish Highlands overnight, while a blistering -15C is possible in some sheltered glens.
Snow will also begin to spread to the south early on Wednesday morning, with Met Office meteorologist Alex Burkill saying people should "expect to wake up to snow" on Wednesday if they live on higher ground.
He said: "I think over higher grounds such as Exmoor, the Chilterns and the Cotswolds there will be a fair amount of snow."
Mr Burkhill added that "it is going to be quite difficult" to estimate how much snow will settle elsewhere in the region, with the ground likely to be still wet following rainfall today.
An extended yellow weather warning has now been applied by the Met Office for the south of England and Wales, with national forecaster advising that "spells of snow on Wednesday may cause travel disruption during Wednesday into Thursday morning"
Warnings will also be in place for snow and ice in the north of Scotland until 10am tomorrow, with a similar alert in place in Northern Ireland.
The Met Office said there was "slight chance" that rural communities could be cut off, adding that cuts to power and phone services were possible.
