New Year's Eve weather: Will fog ruin firework displays?

Fog is forecast to clear ahead of New Year's Eve fireworks displays, but heavy rain and gale-force winds in parts of Scotland threaten to put a dampener on Hogmanay celebrations.

The Met Office said some fog patches were expected to persist across the South on Saturday morning, with motorists warned of difficult driving conditions.

The forecaster's fog warning on Saturday morning stretches from Yorkshire and Humber through parts of the Midlands and to the South.

Air travellers are being warned that further delays or cancellations are possible.

:: Latest UK weather forecast

The fog is expected to largely lift by the evening.

Fresh warnings have been issued by Public Health England (PHE) as it warned of an incoming cold snap that is set to send temperatures plummeting as low as -5C (23F) in parts on New Year's Day.

A weather warning has been issued for northwest Scotland with outbreaks of heavy rain due to last well into Saturday.

Together with gale-force winds, it is set to make for difficult driving conditions as people make their way to Hogmanay celebrations - with the rain moving south later in the evening.

Dr Thomas Waite, of PHE's extreme events team, said people should look out for others, particularly the very young, old and ill, during the cold snap.

He said: "Every winter thousands of people die because of their exposure to cold weather and doctors' surgeries, hospitals and other parts of the NHS are kept busy as people fall ill - that's why it's really important that we all do everything we can to ensure everyone stays well this winter."

Heavy fog has caused widespread travel disruption in recent days, with cancellations and delays at major airports, including Heathrow and Gatwick.

Some 40 flights have been cancelled at Heathrow today. Passengers are being warned of delays and are asked to contact their airline for information.

In the early hours of Friday morning, 17 people were injured when a coach veered off an M40 slip road and overturned in heavy fog near Milton Common in Oxfordshire.

It happened 20 miles from a fatal pile-up on the A40 in similarly treacherous conditions on Wednesday morning that left one woman dead and several injured.