"I hope for the sake of Network Rail that nature does not invent a new form of snow."

I suspect they've convened a meeting already and agreed to spend tomorrow in bed...............

Nick, Winchester,

It may be -25C in other places but here in UK the climate is damp so it is cold in comparison. I can accept such coldness in those places as it is a dry cold, but here ....brrr. Yes, transport will grind to a stop and drivers will gingerly drive on inappropriate tyres and use the brakes when the gearbox is more safe to slow down. And we will still see parents pushing pushchairs with the children inadequately dressed, being shouted at for crying, and teenagers showing bare buttocks and complaining of the cold. Strange country.

Romans Seja, Leicester,

I see that there are climate change ostriches on this board, too.

Ann, Manchester,

Can't be very apocaplyptic if de-icer is included in the emergency kit, when I tried it here I got a nice sheet of frozen de-icer.

Bob Johnson, Near Kuopio, Eastern Finland

http://www.bbc.co.uk/weather/5day.shtml?id=3157 ???!!!!!

david connor, bognor regis,

No matter whether its cold or hot someone always manages to get "issues" into it. Can't anybody, anywhere in the world ,write or say something without saying issues.

Phil de Buquet, Newport, England

Much as I would like to have a white New Year, unfortunately Piers Corbyn "weather expert" is a slightly mad ranter who makes wild statements and extreme weather predictions (see his website). He is well known in the Reinsurance business, where his extreme predictions have, at the very least, opened himself up to ridicule. Ms Wighton, please double check your sources first! If they fail the self publicising, mad, ranting professor test leave well alone!

Andrew, London,

Adherents to the theory of anthropogenic global warming really should read the science; all of it, especially the bits that are based strongly on observation rather than computer modelling. It is a very decent theory, likely to be true, but with serious flaws*.

*Doesn't explain natural climate change; measurement of the earth's temperature inevitably very selective; available historic temperature records not a random sample; computer modelling very vulnerable to feedback effects; fails to account for changes in water vapour and clouds adequately; essentially untestable as it doesn't make specific predictions; has been supported by falsified data (the 'hockey stick' graph etc), and so on.

Frank Upton, Solihull,

Well I'm here in veliko turnovo and its heavy snow here and temps. for the weekend down to minus 17.c So you poor people back in the uk .

Andrew Davies, Veliko Turnovo, Bulgaria

For those who are all excited about a wee bit of snow coming to England why don't you head up to Strathspey? Plenty of white stuff and freezing temperatures which never gets mentioned as it's all too common...

I Wright, Huntly, Aberdeenshire

"Lellie, read the science. You're in a 1% minority if you think Global Warming is not a serious issue."

Oh dear Dunc (or should that be...?). It is incredible to think that whereas in the past science was performed by individuals or perhaps groups with unique ideas that were then confirmed through experimentation, these days we just need to form and promote a "consensus". If I were him, I would be happy to be in the 1% of non-believers (and in fact, I am, even after reading the "science").

Plate Tectonics anyone?

Robert Johnson, Ely, UK

From another leading artictle today reads "Thousands of commuters are being advised not to travel into London this morning as Liverpool Street station, which has been closed since December 23, failed to reopen."

But in this one they are saying " Network Rail said that it did not expect any delays or unnecessary disruptions."

...So which one, is it to be Network Rail?

Rose, Essex, UK

Paul B. wrote "The global weather climate is extremely complex and we still have a limited understanding of its complexity. "
Oh how right you are Paul.

"...So if you don't know, best be quiet I'd say."

Oh dear. And you were doing so well too... LOL.

Louise Karnston-Willow, Walsall,

The last long, cold spell with plenty of snow that I remember was in 1985 (I think) in West Yorkshire, thick snow on the ground for weeks and temperatures constantly near or under 0c. Winters have been very mild affairs of late which is NO FUN.

At least the stories of grannies freezing to death have stopped.

If it is particularly cold for more than a few days please everyone check in on an aged neighbour to see if they're ok and if they need any provisions. Thanks!

Justin, Nr. Lincoln, UK

Being 36 years old and living in the south-east, the bad snow winters that stick in my memory are 1985 and 1987. We had a great time, back then.

I would love to have another lot of snow like we did in 87. That was well good.

Toby, Hastings,

Lellie, read the science. You're in a 1% minority if you think Global Warming is not a serious issue.

Dunc, edinburgh,

Lovely day here in Toronto. We had about 4 inches of the stuff Christmas cards depict, wet snow clinging to trees, fences, bird feeders etc.. More expected this afternoon/evening..
Looking out my window it is truly a lovely sight.
Low tonight expected to be minus 14. Tomorrow should be fun in rush hour. Fender benders not advised as.
high is expected with strong wind giving a windchill of around minus 26.
Happy New Year to all.
.

Derek Cassels, Toronto , Canada

I spent two lovely years at Alconbury RAF (1970-1972) and enjoyed your weather. I had never heard of black ice before then. I liked your summers best.

Michael Armstrong, Owasso, Oklahoma U.S.A.

Hey the GW nutters have reached the point where all weather - good, bad, and indiffrent - is caused by us 'sinful' humans. Idiots.

Lellie, Edinburgh,

Cold was the winter of 62-63, when I was at a boarding school outside Norwich. This was mainly unheated, and in a good winter the crates of little milk bottles the milkman left outside for our break-time milk ration used to freeze about an inch down. That winter the bottles were rock hard all the way.
I used to like writing rude things about the masters in the ice on the inside of the dormitory windows. If you were lucky, the sun melted it before they read it.
Proper winters!

Roaringboy, near Southwold, Suffolk, UK

Well, Peter Codner, as a south-eastern dweller, I hope the Ice Queen singles out Devizes for a short, sharp lesson. But only around your part of Devizes, of course.

Airwolf, Peacehaven, East Sussex, UK

We British should shut up about our episodes of 'extreme' weather. It is positively embarrassing when one considers the extremes that others accept as perfectly normal. The reality is that we live in a climate that has cool summers and mild winters and that we reliably receive moderate rainfall. Occasionally in winter we may be surprised by a couple of centimetres of snow and temperatures a touch below the freezing point of water. It is to say the least pathetic to introduce words such as 'siberian blast', or 'scorching heatwave' into conversations about our rather equable conditions.

Tony Volpe, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

Those who ridicule Britian's attempts to deal with a cold snap compared with other countries subject to far deeper cold, should consider the behaviour of water and ice. Rail and highway operators, as well as pedestrians and drivers, have to contend with a material that within the space of a few hours can change from a liquid to a solid with around 1/3 the compressive strength of concrete, and with very low levels of friction.

The coefficient of friction of ice increases as temperature falls. Driving in extreme cold on compressed powdered snow is much easier than driving on black ice at barely below freezing.

Furthermore, with the lower temperatures the public are far more likely to support expenditure on salt spreaders, snow ploughs and blowers.

Robert Huxford, London ,

bring it on!

just been to lapland and was disappointed by how warm it was, although there was plenty of snow.

Isn't one of the joys of the British weather its unpredictability?

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!!

del terrill, peterborough, cambs

I would like to see between twenty to forty foot of snow on London, just to shut this government up going on about global warming.

Nite Owl, Ferndown, England

Been there, done that. Had a bbq and went up on ski slopes when it was -25C. No, I'm not making it up or showing off, and I live in England; not Siberia thanks, northrn Canada taught me alot about what cold weather really means. It always amazes me how much people in this country moan on about how "cold" it is. Perhaps people should go to colder places instead of hotter ones - you might realise just how lucky you are with the weather system that we have here.

As for global warming comment, read up on it. Usually after a brief warm period, you end up with an ice age. I wonder how all these people who whine so much about the weather would manage with that?

Gavin Phillips, Newcastle-upon-Tyne,

I absolutely cringe whenever I see people say 'Oh,so much for global warming then...' whenever we experience cold weather.
I wish people would actually attempt to understand issues before they begin to make sarcastic and naive statements (maybe they should do more reading and watch good TV rather than soaps etc).
For your info. global warming does NOT necessarily mean we'll all be basking in some sort of tropical climate. Global warming is a statement to indicate that global air temperatures are rising (natural or man-made is another argument altogether). Because this and other factors cause a rise in ocean temperatures, of which the climate is driven by; this essentially means disrupted weather patterns amongst others. This could potentially lead to COLDER temps in winter as well as warmer over summer in certain parts of the world. The global weather climate is extremely complex and we still have a limited understanding of its complexity.
So if you don't know, best be quiet I'd say.

Paul W, Bracknell,

Sounds like a heatwave to us! I used to live in England and I remember the cold there in the Sixties with no central heating either. Has everyone gone soft?

Bern, Winnipeg, Canada

I haven't seen a proper winter since 1979.
Now that was fun!

If Global Warming is as serious as people make out then that would result in severe cooling in Europe and the UK.
I see no evidence of this at all. The last 20 or so Winters have been as you would expect for the British Isles. This winter has been very agreeable.

Fluff and nonsense

Phill, The Wirral, England

An average temperature of 2.5 deg C is hardly cold! Enough to bring this nesh country to a standstill, all the same.

Brian, farnham, uk

oh, it will be cold in the south east - who cares about them?

peter codner, devizes, england

Who's making the "apocalyptic predictions verging on prophecies of a new ice age", then? Could it be the global warming brigade?

pat, Rochdale, UK

We emigrated to Alberta Canada from the Uk 5 years ago, we are currently having daytime highs of -25 up from a balmy -10 over the Christmas period, so we have some ideas of how you guys might feel with -17. It's not as bad as you think!!

Nick, Peace River, Alberta Canada

Just the forecast of cold, snowy weather will force our glorious transport infrastructure to collapse under so much prognostication :)

Peter Day, Doncaster, UK/ Yorkshire

We are told that Greenlanders have a word for every different variety of snow, of which there are many.............pfffill

So have British Rail companies

Peter Day, Doncaster, UK/ Yorkshire

I hope the radiators at school breakdown and it's shut!

Toby, Manchester, UK

ooohhhh scary try -25C here in Montreal in the next few days, and by the way we all some how keep the trains running, the roads clear and yes we all get to work.

peter andrew, Montreal, canada

We are told that Greenlanders have a word for every different variety of snow, of which there are many. One trusts that God, in his infinite wisdom, will not cause a hitherto unseen type to fall anywhere near British railway tracks; we have only recently got rid of the ghastly Blair and can ill afford a new disaster so soon.

pfffill, Shanghai, China

They have been predicting this sort of weather for the last....... well I've lost track of exactly how many years. The same with the summer. One forecast says it is going to be long and hot, another cold and damp. I reckon they are doing well if they can predict what day it is tomorrow!

Roz, Barnsley, South Yorkshire

"keep the green lobby quiet"? Is that because it's evidence that climate change doesn't exist if it gets cold...you idiot!

W Nelson, London,

So Much for Global warming,eh?

Johnston, Machias, Maine, USA

I blame global warming.

Frank, Perth, Scotland

We have not had a really cold January in England since 1987 so it is always possible. Maybe a colder than average winter in the UK would keep the 'Green Lobby' quiet for a while!

P. V. Mann, Shropshire, England

I hope for the sake of Network Rail that nature does not invent a new form of snow.

andand@kent, Tunbridge Wells,