If you're actually looking forward to taking the kids - or just yourself - outside on Friday or Saturday to build a snowman, snow fort or some other cool masterpiece, here's some inspiration for you.

Gritters have been working late into the night to keep roads safe, while exotic animals frolicked through the freshly-fallen powdered snow. Meanwhile, photographers captured the county's landmarks ...

Temperatures across the county have continued to plummet this week, as weather warnings and flurries of snow brought with them a combined sense of chaos and calm. Gritters have been working late ...

With Friday night expected to be the chilliest of the latest cold snap to grip the UK, photographers from the PA news agency have taken a look at how animals are coping in the snow and freezing ...

snow fort or some other cool masterpiece, here's some inspiration for you. Check out our photos of amazing snow structures from winters past.