The Met Office has named the latest storm to hit the UK, with Storm Bert expected to bring heavy rain, strong winds and disruptive snow over the weekend.

Wind gusts are expected to reach between 40-70mph while heavy snow is predicted in the northern regions on Saturday, with heavy rain in the west.

Temperatures dropped to minus 7.8C in Tulloch Bridge, Scotland, in the early hours of Monday, which is the lowest temperature the UK has seen since last winter.

Cold temperatures, ice and further snow feature on the forecast for the coming days in what the Met Office deemed is the country’s “first taste of winter”.

With this news, many will be thinking about how this chilly weather may affect our pets.

It’s important to prepare our dogs, as well as ourselves, for this forecast.

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Poor weather conditions have forced South Western railway to suspend their replacement buses between Axminster and Exeter St Davids.

The disruption is expected to continue until 2pm on Thursday.

Have you been keeping an eye on the forecast? October was mostly mild, and the weather has continued in that vein in the first third of November. Perhaps you tricked-or-treated in shorts, or watched fireworks in a singlet, so balmy has it felt at times.

There may, however, be a modest change on the way, with daytime temperatures struggling to get into double figures over the next couple of weeks for much of the UK. The big question is: will it be cold enough to justify putting the central heating on?

The thermostat is one of life’s primary domestic battlegrounds; and the split between those who reach for a jumper, rather than turning on a radiator, can be almost Shakespearean in its bitterness. “To thine own self be true,” may be a decent motto, but telling a chilly person to follow your lead by putting on a second sweater doesn’t always go down well.

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Met Office chief meteorologist Matthew Lehnert said: “A northerly airflow will continue to feed snow showers into Scotland over the next few days, with this reaching lower levels at times and bringing the potential for some travel disruption.

“Overnight temperatures will drop below zero fairly widely over the next few days, which has resulted in some ice warnings, with further warnings likely through this week.

“On Thursday, a mixture of snow, sleet and rain is likely to affect the southwest which could potentially bring disruption. It’s likely high ground in the area will see snow, with a mixture of conditions likely at lower levels. 2-5cm of snow is possible in places at lower levels, with around 10cm possible over higher parts of Dartmoor.”

Up to 15cm of snow is expected to fall in some parts of the country as the Met Office issues several yellow weather alerts for snow and ice.

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A frosty and perhaps icy start for most on Thursday with sunshine and wintry showers in areas exposed to the northwesterly wind. Cloudier in the southwest with outbreaks of rain and hill snow moving through. Rather breezy.

Wintry and blustery showers continue in the north of the UK, but drier with clear skies further south, and a widespread frost developing away from any coasts.

Another frosty and in places icy start on Friday with sunshine and wintry showers continuing in exposed areas. Showers and winds gradually easing through the afternoon.

Turning wet and windy for all on Saturday, with some hill snow initially, and blustery showers on Sunday and Monday. Milder on Saturday and Sunday but cooler again into Monday.

National Rail is warning of four days of disruption for rail travellers because of the adverse weather.

The organisation says: “The Met Office have issued yellow weather warnings for snow, ice and rain which may affect most of Scotland and many parts of England and Wales until Sunday 24 November.

“Snow and ice are expected today [Thursday] with heavy rain following over the weekend. The rapid thaw of the snow could mean there is a chance of flooding.”

Meanwhile many journeys on Thursday are proving difficult due to a range of other factors. Travellers on the West Coast main line are facing multiple problems from separate points failures between London Euston and Watford Junction and between Wolverhampton and Birmingham New Street. Local services between Euston and Watford are disrupted by defective track.

On the key Thameslink commuter line through London, a passenger being taken ill between St Albans and West Hampstead is delaying trains.

In Scotland, Glasgow Queen Street has signalling problems. Trains to and from Edinburgh Waverley have been cut from four to two per hour.

Snow and ice are set to cause further problems for commuters across the country on Thursday as weather warnings remain in place.

A yellow weather warning for frequent snow showers, possible hail and icy conditions is in place for much of north and west Scotland until midday, with the Met Office warning of difficult travelling conditions.

Between 2cm and 5cm (up to 2ins) of snow is expected widely and it could reach 10cm in some parts of the north-west mainland, with higher ground seeing 15cm to 20cm (up to 7.8ins), the Met Office said.

A yellow warning for ice with a “few sleet or snow showers” remains in effect until 10am covering most of Scotland, the East and West Midlands, the East, north-east and north-west of England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Yorkshire.

Parts of south-west England including Plymouth and Exeter have also received a yellow warning for snow between 5am and 3pm on Thursday, with 5cm to 10cm predicted in higher parts of Dartmoor.