UK could experience warmest Christmas Day on record ahead of Storm Conor

Mild temperatures could make it the warmest Christmas Day on record, forecasters say.

Areas in the South are expected to reach 15C (59F), pushing close to the record of 15.6C (60F) registered in Devon in 1920.

But while parts of England will be bathed in sunshine, there could be snow in northern Scotland and bookmakers have cut the odds on a white Christmas.

The contrasting weather is the result of Storm Conor, which is pulling mild air behind it as it approaches the north of the UK.

The latest storm will follow Storm Barbara, which caused travel disruption and power cuts in the north of Scotland on Friday.

The Met Office has issued 11 weather warnings for Boxing Day.

The most serious are in place for the Highlands, Orkney and Shetland, where winds could reach 90mph.

Those areas were the worst hit by Storm Barbara, which cut power to more than 25,000 homes.

Met Office meteorologist Chris Page said: "Because of the wind direction from the southwest, Storm Conor brings up some milder air which means temperatures will only drop to lows of 9 (48F) and 10C (50F), making it a very mild start to Christmas day.

"We'll see some clearer, drier spells in Scotland but the sunshine will be in the south and with southwesterly winds dragging up more mild air we could even see some records broken.

"It could maybe reach 15C which could make it the warmest Christmas day of record in the last 100 years.

"For Scotland though, we could still see a touch of snow."

Scotland's Transport Minister Humza Yousaf has chaired a meeting of the Scottish Government's resilience committee to prepare for the impacts of Storm Conor.

He said: "The worst of Storm Conor is once again expected to affect the north of Scotland, the Western Isles, Orkney and Shetland, bringing heavy rain and winds of up to 90mph.

"I can assure the travelling public that our transport operators and trunk road operating companies are working hard to keep services and roads running.

"However, safety is always our top priority, so we are seeing likely to see disruption to ferries and possibly flights to the islands. It is important to remember that operators do not cancel services lightly."