Christmas Eve in the UK has officially been declared the warmest since 1997, with temperatures reaching 15.3C in Heathrow, west London, and Cippenham in Slough, according to the Met Office.

Despite earlier speculation about breaking the record for the warmest December 24th ever, the current record set in 1931 at 15.5C in Aberdeen and Banff, Scotland, remains untouched.

The unseasonably mild weather sets the stage for a potentially hottest Christmas Day since 2016.

Met Office forecaster Dan Stroud mentioned that while temperatures might experience a slight decline on Christmas Day, they are expected to remain comfortably above average. Anticipating 13-14C, he stated that this could be the warmest Christmas Day since 2016 when temperatures reached 15.1C.

The record for the warmest Christmas Day in Scotland is 15.1C, achieved in Dyce in 2011 and Urquhart, Ross and Cromarty, in 2016. Despite the mild temperatures, strong winds were reported in some areas on Christmas Eve, with gusts of up to 56mph hitting parts of the Isle of Wight and Northern Ireland.

A yellow weather warning for wind, covering eastern England from the Scottish border to the Midlands, was in effect until 22:00 GMT, with expectations of travel disruptions, potential damage to buildings, and power cuts in those areas, as warned by the Met Office.

Christmas Day is set to be damp for much of the UK, with heavy rain possible in Wales.

Most parts of Scotland will a see rain showers and relatively warm highs of 8C or 9C.

However, forecasters say a white Christmas is still likely in parts of northern Scotland.

They say snow could fall on higher ground in areas such as Caithness and Sutherland.

For Christmas Day to be classed as an "official" white Christmas, just one snowflake has to be observed within the 24 hour period.

It is well.
Climate change.

Ok