Four people were killed in two separate motorway collisions in Britain.

Three men died when a coach crashed into the Audi in which they were travelling north on the M1 motorway, near Flitwick in Bedfordshire. A fourth man was taken to hospital.

BBC news reported the driver of the coach had been arrested. Police said the coach collided with the car when it was stopped at the side of the motorway on the hard shoulder.

One person was killed in a different accident involving 40 vehicles on the M40 motorway near Bicester in Oxfordshire.

Police Chief Inspector Henry Parsons at the scene said another person was critically ill and six others seriously injured. More than 50 other people sustained minor injuries. He said police believed fog played a major part in the accident, the likes of which they had not had to deal with for several years.

Both roads were closed for several hours leading to severe traffic delays on the first day of the half-term holiday.