Baltic Britain: Arctic gusts due this week will make parts of the country feel like it's -9C in the wind
Snow will descend on Britain this week as the country faces a sweep of freezing temperatures.
Temperatures will feel as low as -9C on Friday as a cold sweep moves in from the north, the Met Office revealed.
The freeze is beginning to creep in but will reach its height on Thursday when snow will fall across Scotland and in the north.
Ice-capades: Skaters at Somerset House in London today. The ice won't just be restricted to the rink next week as temperatures plunge to -9C
Mighty Swoosh: Comedian Noel Fielding took to the ice at the special skate session today, where skaters were invited to wear extravagant and eccentric hats in tribute to fashionista Isabella Blow, who died in 2007
Isabella Blow was the former fashion director for Tatler and was known for her flamboyant headwear
The snow is expected to settle in the north and east, with accumulations of around 10-15cm predicted.
It will follow a spell of warmer temperatures today and tomorrow - with highs of around 6C - and a quick blast of rain that will scale the nation from north west to south east on Wednesday.
The freezing climes will likely see off the last-remaining autumn leaves scattered around the country.
Making the most of the pre-winter golden glow, three tigers were pictured today rolling around in a pile of leaves.
The three Amur tigers at Longleat Safari Park in Wiltshire wrestled each other to find treats which their keepers had hidden underneath.
Flamboyant: The Mighty Boosh creator and comedy actor is known for his extravagant clothes
Mohican: The event was held to celebrate Somerset House¿s winter exhibition Isabella Blow: Fashion Galore! Skaters were encouraged to wear their finest hat or fascinator on the ice
Cold elegance: A skater wears a extravagant red creation with a veil, while another skater dons a headband with twigs attached
Misty dusk: As the sun sets over London this afternoon, the mist casts an orange glow through the capital
Brisk walk: Before the freeze descends on Britain this week, a couple in Suffolk go for a December walk
Amur tigers at Longleat got very excited over stunning autumn leaves at the Wiltshire Safari park this week
Hailed from Siberia, the freezing climes set for this week are no problem for the tigers enjoying 6C today
Glow: As autumn comes to an end, a warm glow is cast over the Wiltshire park where the tigers look for treats
Keepers hid food under the leaves and the felines wrestled each other for it in the open woods
Ian Turner, a keeper at Longleat, said: 'The tigers love anything new to investigate and they were soon leaping into the leaves and hunting out the food inside the mounds.
'The leaf litter also provided the perfect opportunity for them to practice their ambush skills.
'It's quite a sight to see fully-grown tigers leaping over piles of leaves.
'The leaves went down equally well with our troop of macaque monkeys who wasted no time in wading into the mounds and start foraging for food.
'The meerkats were a little more wary before jumping in and joining the fun.'
Unlike the animals native to Britain, the trio of tigers hailed from Siberia will have no problem with playing outside once the freezing temperatures descend this week.
Ahoy there: Walkers and children enjoy playing on a replica pirate ship in the winter sunshine at New Brighton, Wirral, Cheshire
Crisp: Walkers enjoy the view of Liverpool city centre across the Mersey from the shore of New Brighton
Festive: Two Bristol brothers last night turned on the lights at their mother's home to start the festive season
Merry: Lee Brailsford and his brother Paul started the tradition in 1994 and have now built up their display to £20,000 worth of lights. Almost 1,000 people gathered outside the house in Brentry for the big reveal
Nativity: The set is completed by a nativity set and fake snow - ahead of the real snow coming this week
Tonight, after days of blustering wind, cloud is set to cover the nation and temperatures hover around 6C in the South, Wales and Northern Ireland.
The North East, North West and Scotland will be hit with the lowest temperatures of 3-4C.
Despite some rain in the early hours of tomorrow morning, it looks set to be dry nationwide.
The fog will lift by Monday morning but return again in the evening.
After a steady few days, Thursday night will signal a drop in temperatures nationwide.
Alongside the usual Santas and snowmen, they also have bears in Christmas hats playing drums
Huskies: These festive toy dogs welcome in visitors as they enter the front garden of the Bristol home
Santa's workshop: There are little figurines and fake snow clouds dotted around the windows
The South will drop from 6C in the day to 3C early evening. The North East will drop from around 4C to 0C and parts of Scotland will go from around 3C to -2C.
By Friday morning, the highest temperatures will be around 2C in Northern Ireland, which will have a 'feels like temperature' of -1C, according to the Met Office.
Carlisle will be as low as -2C, which feels like -9C.
The Met Office revealed Christmas looks set to be unsettled in the north and bright in the south, although it is too early to predict accurate temperatures or snow.
Parents and children were delighted as they collected their Christmas trees when they were helped by these giant shaggy dogs. The huge Newfoundland dogs were on hand for one day only
Santa's little helper: A Newfoundland dog in Cannock, near Birmingham, pulls a sleigh with a Christmas tree at the Forestry Commission's Cannock Chase Forest as people shop to decorate their homes
Excited: Matthew Connor, 40, brought his daughters Eleanor, eight, and Jessica, 10, to see the animals
However, that hasn't stopped people from embracing the festive spirit to celebrate the start of December.
Last night almost 1,000 people gathered outside a house in Bristol where two brothers switched on one of Britain's biggest home light displays.
Every year builders Lee and Paul Brailsford turn their mother's house in Brentry, Bristol, into a winter wonderland with tens of thousands of lights each year.
They started the tradition in 1994 and have now built up their display to £20,000 worth of lights.
For this year's event, local bands and dance acts performed to celebrate.
And in Cannock, near Birmingham, dogs were enlisted to help carry Christmas trees on sleighs as families flocked to get their own Norwegian firs.
The big shaggy dogs delighted parents and children as they darted around the Forestry Commission's Cannock Chase Forest decked in tinsel.
