The winter of 2010–11 was a weather event that brought heavy snowfalls, record low temperatures, travel chaos and school disruption to the islands of Great Britain and Ireland.

A maximum snow depth of 76 cm (30 in) was recorded on 1 December in the Peak District, Sheffield, Doncaster, the Cotswold Hills and the Forest of Dean.

During the latter part of November, northern blocking established over Greenland which resulted in the jet stream moving south, allowing cold air to flow in from the east.

In the following days, the snow fell far more widely leading to widespread travel disruption, school closures and cancellation of sporting fixtures.

[15] Retailers were particularly badly hit by lost sales with footfall down nearly 20% compared to the same period the previous year and as much as 30% in the West Midlands and South East.

[14] Christmas is usually the most profitable period for the pub and restaurant industry, however, due to disruptions to delivery routes, numerous stock outs and disappointing trading updates were reported.

[18] Thousands of motorists across Sheffield became stranded on 1–7 December as up to as much as 61 cm (2 ft) of snow fell on the city with severe disruption across the county of South Yorkshire including the suspension of all bus services for 24 hours.

[19] Eurostar rail services to the continent were cancelled on 20 December causing severe delays with queues at St Pancras station stretching more than 800 metres (1⁄2 mi) as far back as the British Library.

services were cancelled on the East Coast Main Line between London and Peterborough due to damage to overhead power cables caused by accretion of ice.

[citation needed] At Newcastle Airport, a plane overshot its target stop position on the runway, but remaining on the hard surface.

[22] The Met Office issued a number of weather warnings, and snow began to fall in the early evening of 24 November, with 2 inches (5 cm) recorded in Newcastle upon Tyne.

[citation needed] By 26 November, nighttime temperatures fell well below 0 °C (32 °F), with the Welsh towns of Sennybridge and Trawscoed being among the coldest places at −10.2 °C (13.6 °F).

[25] Elsewhere in Ireland, the Irish Insurance Federation revealed there were 22,450 claims from the public, the majority of which involved snow or ice damage to people's homes.

[27] Motorists in Wales and Northern Ireland struggled with icy roads while Scotland was facing more heavy snow and drifts thanks to a biting wind.

[31] By 6 December, snowfall in the Central Belt in Scotland led to the closure of the M8 motorway for two days with hundreds of motorists stranded overnight.

[35] Heavy snow fall was also reported over large parts of Devon causing major travel disruption.

[39] On 24 December, it was decided to cancel the 27th IRFU's Celtic League meeting with Leinster as Ulster's Ravenhill pitch froze under heavy snow.

[citation needed] At the end of December, thousands of homes and businesses in Northern Ireland and Wales were without water as melting snow and ice revealed many burst pipes.

[45] However, freezing rain caused disruption in Shropshire, and Greater Manchester experienced heavy overnight snow which affected travel on the morning of the 4th.

[47] Welsh flood warnings stay in place in four areas, with roads closed after heavy bursts of rain affecting Conwy and Gwynedd.