A huge party is taking place in Edinburgh

The warning came as organisers called off several outdoor celebrations due to the weather.

Official events in Liverpool, Middlesbrough, Londonderry, Stirling and Brighton have been cancelled.

Organisers of the display in Londonderry, which was to have been the highlight of a programme of events to usher in 2001, said strong winds and heavy rain put paid to the plans.

'Horrible' conditions

Liverpool City Council had organised two fireworks displays as well as an outdoor concert.

A council spokesman said an indoor children's party was the only event still scheduled to take place.

"Everyone is hugely disappointed but there is nothing we can do about it. We are planning to have a similar event over Easter now to make up for this," he added.

In Middlesbrough town centre events were called off, including the lighting of the Millennium Beacon which has toured the country.

Stirling Council has cancelled its New Year celebrations on the advice of police.

Celebrations in Belfast were at risk of being cancelled but have been moved indoors instead.

For some, the weather is welcome

The event, which includes Jools Holland and Rolf Harris, is now taking place in the Ulster Hall in the city.

Scots are bracing themselves for the coldest Hogmanay in years.

An estimated 100,000 people from around the world are expected to pack the centre of Edinburgh for what has been billed as "the world's greatest New Year party".

'Scots are used to rain'

As crowds began to gather in the city the rain started to fall.

Peter Irving, director of the organisers Unique Events, told BBC News 24: "Edinburgh is the home of hogmany. We are not dismayed by the weather. It's not cold, it's not windy. It's a light rain, we Scottish people are used to that."

He said the fireworks for this year's celebrations were the biggest the company had ever done.

A band of cold weather is expected to move from Northern Ireland across to the UK, bringing snow across northern England, Scotland and North Wales.

But London's New Year's Day Parade will go ahead, with organisers predicting that more than a million people will turn out to watch the parade.

About 16,000 visitors are converging on the Dome in Greenwich to dance into 2001 with the help of top DJs such as Paul Oakenfold.

Elsewhere, 32 towns and cities will host 200 hours of festivities including an aerial tightrope walk in Coventry, a world record sing-a-long attempt in Manchester and the UK's biggest tea dance in Plymouth.

Fireworks will again play a major part in welcoming the New Year with a pyrotechnics extravaganza promised in Blackpool.

Driving conditions remain treacherous in some parts

Treacherous conditions continued to take their toll on the roads.

In County Durham police have closed the A66 trans-Pennine route which runs into Cumbria because of heavy winds and snow.

Wind speeds in the area have already topped 35mph. In Northumberland, forecasters expect up to six inches of snow to fall throughout the night.

A motorist died after his car hit a wall along an icy country road near Bodmin, Cornwall, in the early hours of Sunday morning.

A 48-year-old woman driver died after being hit by a car as she wiped snow from her windscreen on the A460 near Rugeley, Staffordshire.