Friday was the coldest January night in the UK in 15 years after temperatures plummeted to -18.7C in a hamlet in northern Scotland, the Met Office said.

Altnaharra, in the Highlands, first recorded the temperature at 10pm Friday night, with the freezing conditions lasting well into Saturday morning.

It is the coldest January overnight temperature since 2010, when temperatures dropped below -15C several times at locations across the UK, including -22.3C on 8 January in Altnaharra.

Forecasters previously said there was a very small probability it could reach - 19C.

Much of the UK endured below freezing temperatures overnight, with the mercury dropping to -11C in Shap, Cumbria, and Heathrow recording-5C.

The average low in northern Scotland for this time of year is about 0.3C, while for England, overnight lows are about 1.5C to 1.6C.

The Met Office meteorologist Zoe Hutin said Saturday was forecast to be cold too.

She said: “It will be mainly eastern parts that see temperatures dropping widely below freezing, so East Anglia, the north-east of England, northern and eastern Scotland as well.

“So another chilly night to come on Saturday, but then as we go into Sunday and into Monday, then we can start to expect temperatures to recover somewhat.

“I won’t rule out the risk of seeing something around or just below freezing again on Sunday night into Monday, but it won’t be quite so dramatic as the temperatures that we’re going to experience as we go overnight tonight.”

Looking ahead to next week, she said: “We’re saying it’s getting milder but by no stretch does that mean [temperatures] are going to be above average – it just will feel comparatively much more pleasant than it is at the moment.”

The UK has experienced a “particularly long cold spell”, she said, adding: “It has been getting progressively colder each night this week, whereas looking at previous years, we’ve had maybe two or three days where things have been particularly cold.”