UK weather: Exact date shock snow storm bringing 2cm per hour to hit 20 counties

A shock spring snowstorm will bring flurries of up to 2cm per hour descending over a cluster of UK counties this week as the country clouds over following a stunning start to the month.

Brits have basked in temperatures pushing past the 15C mark for more than a week now, with almost unstoppable sunshine ushering a promising start to spring. The new season, which officially started on March 21, is expected to bring even warmer at the end of the week, with potential highs reaching 20C and beyond ahead of the weekend in yet another expected surge. But new maps show people's best hopes may soon be dashed as low pressure falls across the country and introduces a snowy snap.

The maps from WXCharts, a service that pulls weather data from MetDesk, show a cold front developing in less than two weeks' time as temperatures start to slide south. Maps showing the day's forecast capture a massive purple blotch representing snowfall taking shape over dozens of square miles over England and Wales.

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The snowy system looks set to hit 19 different counties across England and Wales, including:

• Berkshire
• Wiltshire
• Somerset
• Devon
• Dorset
• Oxfordshire
• Warwickshire
• Worcestershire
• Herefordshire

In Wales, the affected counties are:

• Monmouthshire
• Caerphilly
• Torfaen
• Vale of Glamorgan
• Cardiff
• Newport
• Bridgend
• Rhonda Cynon Taf
• Merthry Tydfil
• Blaenau Gwent

The map also shows London being enveloped by a massive rainy system, with up to 5mm per hour of rain falling over the capital at the same time as cascades elsewhere.

The long-range forecast, which covers April 14 to 23, warns of more general precipitation in April following an exceptionally dry March. The service states that, following the stunning wall-to-wall sunshine that started the month this year, a "much more changable period" will follow.

It states: "A much more changeable period through at least the early part of next week as low pressure lies to the west of the UK bringing a mixture of showers and some longer spells of rain, but also some drier, sunnier interludes. There is a low risk of heavier, possibly thundery showers coming into the country from the south for a time early in the period, but confidence in this aspect of the forecast is low and these may well pass to the east.

"This heralds a wetter period through the middle of April with showers or longer spells of rain at times, which could be heavy and thundery in places.

"Strong winds could develop in some areas, particularly the south and west. Temperatures are likely to return closer to normal."