By now February’s ephemeral beams of sunlight are but a distant memory.
We’re starting March as we mean to go on: wet, cold and in permanent bad hair day mode.
This weekend will be no exception, for Spring has sprung in the form of a big wet slap.
The weather will be unsettled, wet, windy and blustery, with a chance of snow in the Scottish highlands.
By Saturday a heavy band of slow moving rain will sweep the country, with a risk of overnight frost.
A low pressure system over the bottom half of the UK will mean some slightly warmer temperatures, with a possibility of staying in double figures in the south and highs of 8 or 9C in the Midlands, dropping to 6 or 7C for the north.
Preliminary statistics from the Met Office show the 2016/17 winter has been dry and mild compared to the long-term average, and indeed early February figures show a milder than average month to end the season.
Climate Scientist Dr Mark McCarthy from the National Climate Information Centre said: “This winter has been dry for most of the UK. What is unusual is the combination of mild and dry conditions, as these factors do not usually go hand in hand in a typical UK winter. This is due to spells of high pressure bringing settled calm conditions being mixed in with depressions that have pulled warm air up from the south.”
The rains and bluster follow in the wake of Storm Ewan, which saw the Met Office issue a number of severe weather warnings as gusts of 70mph battered some exposed areas.
Ewan made its entrance just after Storm Doris, which saw one woman killed after being hit by debris.