It's perhaps no coincidence that Arctic Ice area ecovery this year has been faster than recent years?

Was the RAC rally held in late November? I seem to recall there was often snow during it in the 1980s.

Yeh I remember a few segments through north wales, was always a couple of runs through snowy patches...

ICON first out the blocks and at 144 the Atlantic high is much further North, setting up a decent Northerly to follow from this point instead of a deep low dropping across the UK as per the 06Z offering.

You can tell something's in the air when I start to comment on each run before it's complete. Must avoid it really

I remember the days when there'd be about half a dozen people simultaneously posting as the runs came out. Ahhhh.... nostalgia 

Yeah now nobody gives a flying ****! The old days were fun. 😂😂

We are a bunch of cynical old trouts. 

I’ve kept quiet about the upcoming spell - I don’t see anything to be massively excited about quite yet, especially since the block looks to become a bit flabbier than first modelled, although plenty of time for change.

Make no bones about it though - the outlook is generally cold. 

Aware this is the 06z.

Indeed

The UKMO again looks very clean with the main Northerly next week, whilst GFS again complicates things with jinxy shortwaves developing in the 'corridor of uncertainty' and pushing down from the NW. I wouldn't bet against GFS as it's pretty good in these situations - to a certain point.

Snow over the Scottish hills?

https://www.theweatheroutlook.com/twodata/ukmetuk.aspx?run=12&charthour=168&chartname=precip_type&chartregion=uk-region&charttag=Precip%20type

Used to be 3rd week of November. Search <RAC Rally 1980> or whatever year for exact dates. Now called the Welsh Rally, this year just about to happen i.e. 19th-21st Nov.

The 1993 Rac rally was very snowy . I had it on VHS for some reason. Colin McRae in his pomp.

RAC rally in 1988 was also snowy. 

ECM too far west to be of use to people down here

Severe cold weather lovers might ( JFF) want to check out the daily cfs 9mois  from 12z yesterday. The period between 27th Dec and middle of Jan, incredible synoptics.

As for todays runs. Not really surprised after the trend the last 24 hours. Looking forward the trend could continue until we are looking at each other asking what happened to the northerly we were meant to have, then again we could see a gradual backtrack again  to something much colder and wintry for whole country

More runs needed me thinks.

As an aside, this weekend is the 50th anniversary of the Cairngorm Tragedy. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cairngorm_Plateau_disaster

I think the 'Gorms are currently snow free .... (though that may change in the coming days - but nothing on a par with 1971)

More emphasis tonight on cyclonic cool and unsettled conditions from Thursday rather than the clean cold northerly being more widely modelled previously. There is more of a struggle to get the -5c (850Hpa) isotherm into England. Variations on a theme that hasn't really deviated for a few days now.   

Goodness, I had never heard of that incident. How awful. 

I had no idea of that tragedy, and have just read about it. So sad. Even the leaders were little more than kids.

Don't understand why the authorities later knocked down the high-level shelters. I think I go with the principle that any shelter is better than no shelter.