Britons dreaming of a white Christmas could instead see one of the warmest Christmas Days on record.
The weather is expected to be milder than usual this year, particularly in parts of Scotland on Christmas Eve.
The mercury could hit 11°C overnight in the north-east of the country on December 24-25, according to the Met Office.
This would beat the record for the warmest minimum temperature north of the border – 10.6°C in Dounreay, Caithness – which was set in 1971.
Temperatures are expected to be mildest this week on Christmas Eve, with 15°C possible in parts of the country.
Christmas Day is forecast around a maximum of 13 to 14°C.
The highest temperature ever recorded for Christmas Eve was 15.5°C in 1931, in Gordon Castle, Banff, and Craibstone, Aberdeenshire.
The record high for Christmas Day was 15.6°C at Killerton, Devon, in 1920. In Scotland the highest ever temperature was 15.1°C in Dyce, Aberdeenshire, in 2011 and in Urquhart, Ross and Cromarty, in 2016.
Met Office spokesman Oli Claydon said it would be a “mild Christmas” for many with “notably high temperatures” over the festive period, but said this “doesn’t necessarily bring sunny skies unfortunately”.
He said: “The key notable factor of the weather through this week really is the mild conditions and higher temperatures.
“The risk of ice and any snow that we had over the weekend has diminished, and no notable heavy rain should bring any impacts to the transport network.
He added that Christmas Eve was expected to be the mildest day with 14°C and “potentially even up to 15°C in some places”.
Mr Claydon said a mild Christmas Eve could be “quite widespread” from Torbay in Devon to the north east of Scotland.
Temperatures in Scotland and Northern Ireland were “markedly above average for the time of year”, he added.
The Met Office spokesman said Christmas Day would be a “little bit less mild” with “highs of 13°C and maybe 14°C”.
He added that temperatures would “tail off slowly” towards the end of the week.
Last year was the hottest Christmas Eve in the UK since 1997 after temperatures of 15.3°C were recorded at Heathrow in west London and Cippenham in Slough.
