RESIDENTS in Dorset should be braced for a cold snap from Easter Monday and there is every chance of some wintry showers, according to a Bournemouth-based forecaster.

DorsetSnow said that while a definitive snow prediction could not be made, confidence was high for a very cold northerly coming at the end of the bank holiday weekend.

Speaking to the Daily Echo on the afternoon of Wednesday, March 31, DorsetSnow said: "The northerly is likely to bring widespread wintry showers (rain, sleet, snow, hail and maybe even some thunder).

"By night time these showers should fall predominately as sleet or snow with an added air frost risk.

"The most significantly cold air will only last through Monday and Tuesday, but next week generally looks pretty cold.

"A return to more average temperatures is likely by mid-month."

The cold snap will bring a stark contrast to late-March, which saw several days of glorious sunshine.

On Tuesday, many people basked in the sunshine on the south coast with temperatures rising towards 20C on the hottest day of the year so far.