Scotland could wake up to a blanket of snow over Easter as a cold snap is expected to bring snowfall and plunging temperatures.
Unpredictable forecasts over March mean mild weather could make way for wintry conditions, with parts of the country even likely to have a ' white Easter '.
The Met Office say a freezing blast of air moving across Scotland from Good Friday onwards means it is likely there could be snowfall, particularly in the north.
Forecasters explained it is not unusual to experience big variations in temperature, with next week to see a 'sharp, cold snap' following warm sunny spells earlier in the month.
Met Office chief meteorologist Frank Saunders said: "Bands of showery rain will continue to cross the UK today (Thursday) before cold air from the north pushes across the country on Friday.
"A cold front will bring a band of rain and blustery conditions for many and there will be a marked drop in temperatures, with some places seeing a fall of 5 or 6 C between today and Friday.
"There will be some wintry showers in places with some lying snow possible at times over hills further north."
STV weatherman Sean Batty said in a tweet: "Who's dreaming of a white Easter, and I don't mean white chocolate eggs!
"Growing confidence that we're in for a proper cold northerly blast over Easter weekend with snow in the north of the country. Further south probably dry & sunny, but still cold."
The coldest Easter weekend on record is 2013 when -12.5C was recorded at Braemar in Aberdeenshire, while the hottest temperature ever recorded was in 24.2C in Kinlochewe in Wester Ross in 2019.
Meanwhile, the deepest snow recorded on an Easter weekend was in 2010 when 36cm was measured at Strathdearn, Invernessshire, on Good Friday.
The weather forecasts around March and April are notoriously some of the hardest to make throughout the year for the Met Office.
Changing from day to day, one minute forecasts can predict beautiful sunshine and the next heavy snowfall.
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