Sunny spell blown away as gales and rain batter Britain

Millions of us have enjoyed basking in sunshine and warmth as the unseasonably balmy autumn just kept going...and going.
But it seems winter has finally taken a grip, as gales and rain battered parts of Britain yesterday.
The clouds and wind brought an abrupt change to the sunny weekend when  temperatures had soared to 19C.
The arrival of winter proper was confirmed when the Met Office issued a severe weather warning tonight for north-west England and northern Wales.
Flash flooding was a threat with predictions of up to 60mm of rain overnight while gusts of up to 70mph howled in.
Forecasters said gales of up to 50mph would persist until at least Thursday although the worst of the wind and rain would be over by Tuesday.
Just two weeks ago, the country was baking in a mini-heatwave as the mercury rocketed to 30C for some. But on Tuesday,  temperatures are set to be a maximum of 14C in the South and only 11C in the North of England.
Wednesday and Thursday will be even cooler with more blustery showers and temperatures peaking at 13C, just above average for October.
The first ground frosts of autumn will hit the South and North on Tuesday night, with temperatures plummeting to –2C overnight.
Helen Chivers, of the Met Office, said: ‘We will see heavy and persistent rain across parts of north-west England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.
‘It will also be very windy in northern England and north Wales. The next few days will see more blustery conditions, with sunshine and showers.’
October started with some of the warmest temperatures for decades but transport chiefs are planning ahead as some forecasters warn of a ‘Siberian’ winter.
The Department of Transport said it has a 2million ton stockpile of salt and grit – its biggest ever. The Highways Agency has 500 salt-spreading trucks ready and Network Rail has spent ￡40million on heating and de-icing units.
Snow has already fallen in the Scottish mountains, starting on Sunday night and with up to 6in expected by this morning.
Shrouded in early morning mist, the South Downs in East Sussex took on an almost mystical quality today.
And the sun's rays soon pierced the fog to create more wonderful scenes.
In a warning to motorists who will probably have to scrape ice from their cars this week Andy Ratcliffe, a forecaster at MeteoGroup, said: 'It's going to be pretty cold everywhere across the UK on Wednesday night, with widespread ground frost expected in the whole of the UK and perhaps air frost in places too.'
Met Office forecaster Tom Morgan said yesterday: ‘This is the first cold snap of autumn and Monday is the changeover day.
‘Monday afternoon sees the risk of very heavy outbreaks of rain in northern England and Scotland, potentially gale-force winds and thunderstorms, and snow expected over 500m in northern Scotland.
‘All parts will be much colder from Tuesday, with wintry showers of hail, sleet and possible snow on the Pennines and North Yorkshire Moors, and hail and sleet in the Peak District.
‘Wednesday afternoon will see sharp showers in those areas, and we could see snow to lower levels in northern and north-eastern Scotland.’
Mr Morgan said that once the gale force winds subside, temperatures will fall further.
Forecasts of Arctic weather has raised fears of a major spike in oil prices for home heating.
Experts said elderly people living on their own could freeze to death if they cannot get their oil tanks filled because of raising costs or because delivery lorries cannot get through on snow-covered roads.
Last winter the two million homes and businesses which rely on heating oil for cooking and central heating saw prices double in a few weeks, from 40p per litre to 80p per litre.
Many households shivered as suppliers battled to get them enough oil to cope in the severe weather which saw tanks freeze when temperatures plunged to nearly -20 in some places.
Oil lorries could not leave UK refineries on schedule because of treacherous road conditions as blizzards struck.
Now the industry is appealing to people to stock up early and take advantage of lower prices now before they soar with the onset of winter.
Chris Bale, director of whichoilsupplier.co.uk, said: ‘With limited oil available and huge demand, the national price went through the roof and a large number of consumers, especially those in the countryside, were left with no fuel for weeks on end last winter.
‘We are encouraging people to plan ahead and ensure they have sufficient kerosene to see them through the winter.’