A layer of snow coats a sign in the Cambs village of Caldecote

Rain began turning into snow in northern England and Wales, and Northern Ireland on Thursday afternoon.

It later settled further south in Birmingham, parts of the East Midlands and Milton Keynes, Cambridgeshire and Essex, where drivers were warned to take care.

It was the first snow of the winter for England and Wales but not for Scotland, according to Nicky Robertson of the PA Weather Centre.

She said it was possible London would see a few flakes as well.

By Thursday night, temperatures had dropped to around 1C (34F) with parts of Yorkshire below freezing and expected to go as low as -5C (23F).

In pictures: UK's first snow

Most of Scotland did not have snow although there were very low temperatures and heavy snow showers forecast for northern parts later.

Forecasters had warned Britain was set to experience its coldest night of the winter so far.

And the Highways Agency has issued a warning to drivers, with freezing temperatures expected to affect roads overnight and in the morning.

Gritters were on standby to treat motorways and other main roads.

'Reduce speed'

Police in Cambridgeshire also urged drivers to be careful after the first centimetre or so of winter snow fell on the county.

A wintry landscape between Larne and Ballymena, in County Antrim

A spokeswoman said there had been no major problems on the roads as a result of the snow, which began falling shortly after 1800 GMT.

A spokesman for AA Roadwatch said: "Drivers should allow extra time for journeys, take extra care, and keep speeds down."

He said the M11 in Essex had been affected by bad weather. More hilly parts of the road had the most problems with ice.