Weatherman Michael Fish has put his reputation on the line again - betting £1,000 it will not snow in London on Christmas Day.

Mr Fish, 60, from Eastbourne, famous for his "What hurricane?" prediction in 1987, will donate his winnings to the Band Aid appeal.

The retired BBC forecaster is placing the bet at odds of 14-5.

He said: "I've been following the speculation with interest over the last few days and while I agree it is looking probable it will snow in the North, it's not so likely in London.

"For it to be deemed a white Christmas, at least one flake of snow has to fall on the roof of the London Weather Centre.

"The building is in central London where temperatures can be several degrees higher than the outer parts of the city and therefore it's unlikely we will see snow this year.

"It has not snowed on Christmas Day in London since 1970."

Weather experts are predicting much of Britain will enjoy a white Christmas, with some parts of the country getting "significant falls of snow".

Sussex and the South East are not hot favourites but the Met Office says "anywhere could see snow."