Image source, Getty Images

Met Office forecaster Greg Dewhurst has highlighted the north-south divide as Storm Dudley sweeps across the UK.

"We've seen Storm Dudley move in over the course of today with strong winds and heavy rain across northern parts of the country," he says.

"This is a complete contrast to areas in the south which have been rather mild and calm for the most part, the temperature even reaching 17C in some areas.

"Exposed areas in Scotland, Northern Ireland, parts of Wales and northern England have seen wind speeds largely between 60 and 70mph but the worst affected areas have reached and even surpassed 80mph this afternoon."

Thousands of people are without power after rain and high winds hit parts of the north east of England, Cumbria, North Yorkshire and Lancashire as Storm Dudley struck.

An amber wind warning, external is in place until midnight then a yellow wind warning, external from Thursday afternoon into Friday as Dudley leaves and Storm Eunice arrives.

Power firms had said they were ready after storms such as Arwen, Malik and Corrie caused days of outages.

Northern Powergrid had to put people in a queue for its website due to demand.

Image source, Northern Powergrid

Image source, PA Media

Glasgow Central Station would normally be swarming with train passengers making their way home.

But it's been a very strange scene on the platforms since ScotRail ended all services at 16:00.

The operator says it will have teams of engineers working overnight to check if routes are safe to open again on Thursday morning.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Network Rail Scotland

Network Rail says engineers are working to clear a fallen tree at Beattock in Dumfries and Galloway which has blocked the southbound line.

"Work to repair the damaged northbound overhead electric wires will begin as soon as weather conditions allow and resources are on site", the company adds.

Image source, Avanti West Coast

Cross-border rail travel continues to be seriously affected.

Avanti West Coast now says due to damage to the overhead electric wires at Carlisle, all lines towards Glasgow and Edinburgh are blocked.

Gales brought by Storm Dudley lead to disruption to services between Douglas and Heysham.

Truck driver Tomasz Gesek's journey to Lesmahagow from Arbroath was a challenge in the high winds.

Gale-force winds of up to 72mph have been recorded in South Lanarkshire, where his depot in based.

ScotRail's managing director Alex Hynes says the operator is working with Network Rail to deal with wind damage to power supplies.

All services across Scotland stopped for the day at 16:00.

Safety checks will be carried out before it is decided whether services can resume on Thursday.

Francis Reavley, from Kirkwhelpington, Northumberland, lost power for five days during Storm Arwen, then two days during Storm Malik.

His power went off again at about 15:00 GMT today and after reporting it to Northern Powergrid he was told it would be back on later in the afternoon, although reconnection times have since been put back.

"I have no confidence it will be back on then because they just keep putting it back and back," he said.

"I am so frustrated and so fed up with all of this. It looks like we are going to have another dark, cold night."

Drivetime with John Beattie
BBC Radio Scotland

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Traffic Scotland's control centre is monitoring the road network as the storm continues.

The organisation's Douglas Cairns said that there was currently “limited disruption” during the evening commute.

He told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme that:

• the A92 near Kirkcaldy was seeing some restrictions
• the A96 between Keith and Huntly has been closed due to an accident.
• and the Erskine Bridge has been closed to high-sided vehicles.

He told presenter John Beattie: “For us it is a developing picture right now. Given the commencement of the amber warning, we are going to experience some disruption across tonight. We have got our plans and preparation in place."

• Follow Drivetime updates until 6pm

Image source, BBC WEATHER WATCHERS/ BRI

City of Edinburgh Council has urged people to stay indoors during Storm Dudley.

It said people should prepare for potential problems by:

• Securing loose objects that could be blown away
• Locking doors and windows, and especially large doors such as those on garages
• Parking vehicles in a garage or keeping them clear of buildings, trees, walls and fences
• Closing and securing loft trapdoors
• Moving beds away from areas directly below chimney stacks, if the stacks are tall and in poor condition

Officials said people should also not go outside to repair damage.

Image source, Getty Images

Drivers are being urged to be extra cautious in the gale-force conditions.

Neil Gregg, from the road safety charity I.A.M Road Smart, told BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme that car drivers have to be aware of the potential dangers of high-sided vehicles swerving into their path.

Image source, Getty Images

Weather watcher Windy Wilson tells BBC Radio Scotland he has been referring to Dudley as a "Scottish storm" and Eunice as an "English storm" as the worst affected parts for both will be on opposite sides of the border.

And he warns there might be more extreme weather at the start of next week.

As we have been reporting, the west coast of the UK has been taking the brunt of the battering from Storm Dudley.

Seaside towns have seen huge waves crashing in - but inland towns and cities haven't escaped.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Angie Brown
Edinburgh and East reporter

Image source, Edinburgh Trams

Edinburgh Trams plan to run during Storm Dudley, officials say.

All services will continue despite weather warnings of torrential ran and strong winds.

An Edinburgh Trams spokesman said: “At present, services continue to run every seven minutes between Edinburgh Airport and West End.

"However, the safety of customers and colleagues is always our primary concern, so we will continue to closely monitor the situation and take appropriate action should it be required.

“Any changes to services will be communicated via our website, and we also recommend that customers follow our social media channels for regular updates.”

Image source, PA Media

Commuters have been making their way home much earlier than usual before train services ceased across most of Scotland at 16:00.

Glasgow Central Station is normally one of the busiest in the country, but on a day of extreme weather all services have wound up before the evening rush hour.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Getty Images

Storm Dudley is only just starting to bare its teeth - but there are warnings that the clearing-up operation could take days.

Scottish Borders Council says it will do its best to respond to fallen trees affecting routes across the region.

But the local authority has stressed its priority is the safety of staff and contractors.

The council said: "Resources will be targeted at swift recovery actions on Thursday, during daylight hours and in better weather conditions."

It also warned the extreme weather is likely to lead to power cuts and damage to buildings.