To actually start having a (mild) anxiety attack when I hear

[laptopdancer]

Big Freeze Britain is on its way [hsad]

Ah jeez I can't drive in the snow. Have never done it but now have a 90 minute commute each way. Round the M25 + country roads.

And I hate the cold.

Snow of the worst kind always comes unforecast. So if you do have to drive in snow prone areas always carry a shovel, bits of old carpet (1m long), blankets and a secret supply of chocolate .

If you have to drive in snow, leave plenty of space and don't brake! Braking in snow does not work, you need to use the gears to slow down and when starting off, try and do it in 2nd gear.

The next 30 days or so will be quite mild but most weather forecasters think that the second part of winter will be the worst, most likely after Xmas, almost the opposite to last year.

New York and other parts of the USA have had big snowstorms today

I have an auto

Dr Adam Scaife from the MET office was on Costing The Earth on Radio 4 this week and gave the general impression that the chances are it won't be as bad as last year but couldn't be absolute.

This tells us very little other than suggesting news agencies that say 'oooh, terrible weather coming' are scaremongering rather than being helpful.

Is Metcheck not working for anyone else? I have tried for a while now (a few weeks at least) using both my postcode and/or my town, but it comes up with a vb script run time error? VERY annoying. So I have to use metoffice, which tbh, seems less accurate than metcheck usually is

Oh no Ripeberry my Dh is right with the 'don't brake' thing then. I think I will be walking if it snows anyway. See how much shopping we can get on the sledge.

Winter 2010 I lived in a non-A-road (on an estate) with quite a hill, North facing. My employer would not believe that I was snowed in, but the snow was so thick nothing could get out of the road. Except, that is, for my neighbour with his tiny old Peugot 106. He said it was the front wheel drive that made all the difference.

MrBloom worry not. We'll just talk you through it on here, just make sure you get to the computer before the strong contractions start [hgrin].