Colder weather on its way

Millions basked in sunshine yesterday as temperatures reached 20C (68F) in parts of Britain, but forecasters have warned that the mild weekend could have been summer's last hurrah. Lee-on-Solent, in Hampshire, reached 22C on Sunday. But today is expected to mark the start of a cooler spell, with chances of frost in Scotland later in the week. Some parts of the UK will see temperatures of 18C or 19C today, before the mercury begins to fall through the rest of the week. "It's going to be a slow cool-down through this week although it will become quite a bit cooler during the nights with temperatures closer to 0C – the first signs of winter," said Paul Mott, a forecaster for MeteoGroup, the Press Association's weather division. "Daytime temperatures in Scotland by Wednesday will be down to 12C while in England temperatures will go down to 14C." The Met Office said cloud would set in by the end of the week, continuing through into the weekend. It warned that daytime and overnight temperatures could drop below average by the end of next week, with an increasing risk of ground frost across the south and west overnight.