Scotland's weather: Odds slashed for White Christmas in Edinburgh and Glasgow

Edinburgh and Glasgow are odds on for a White Christmas this year.

The latest odds from William Hill show that Scotland’s capital Edinburgh is the odds on favourite for a White Christmas in 2021, with all 13 major UK airports now at their lowest levels in a decade.

Glasgow is also the third favourite for snow on the ground on December 25.

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As we fast approach the five-day window in which snowfall can be accurately forecasted, the BBC, and The Meteorological Office, have issued contradicting forecasts for the week leading up to December 25.

While one predicts a polar vortex, the other suggests a three-month milder period of weather is in the offing.

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Scotland's weather: Scottish cities the favourites in the UK to have a white Chr...

With temperatures set to be around freezing for the Met Office on December 24th, many online forecasts and weather apps are now displaying snow on December 25.

Edinburgh and Newcastle are now 10-11 joint favourites to wake up to a White Christmas, with long-time frontrunner Glasgow now 5-4.

London Gatwick joins Leeds-Bradford on 9-4, before Northern Ireland capital Belfast at 11-4, Birmingham and Manchester (both 3-1), Liverpool and Dublin (both 7-2) and, completing the set, Bristol and Cardiff at 4-1.

William Hill spokesperson Rupert Adams said: “This is the first significant movement in the market and it has been a number of years since we made any of the station's odds on. It will come as a real shot in the arm for those hoping to wake up to blankets of snow on Christmas Day.

“While the battle between the BBC and the MET Office is an intriguing one, what it does show is that next week’s forecast comes with a huge dose of uncertainty.

"But we’ll continue to monitor things, as we have done since the summer, and indeed for many years, and adjust accordingly. That’s exactly what we’ve done in this instance.”

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All that is needed to declare a White Christmas is the observation of a single snowflake falling in the 24 hours of December 25, at one of 13 major UK airports.

The pastime of betting on a white Christmas traditionally required a single snowflake to fall on the MET Office operations centre in London.