Cloudy conditions ruined the spectacle of Monday’s supermoon for most sky-gazers in this country.

There were hopes of an amazing view of the moon appearing 14 per cent bigger and up to 30 per cent brighter than usual as the natural satellite came closer to Earth than it had in nearly 70 years.

But people’s view of the "undeniably beautiful" even was spoiled by the clouds and we’ll now have to wait until 2034 for another opportunity to see it.

While it won’t be quite as super, there is hope that clearer skies later today will give people a better view of the moon – although the Met Office forecasts this will mainly be for areas from Luton and Bristol northwards, and it won’t be a full moon.

Dr Marek Kukula, public astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, said: "It's been a cloudy night for most of the UK and even a supermoon can't get through thick clouds.

"Tuesday's moon will be almost as large and bright as Monday's, so we still have a chance to enjoy the sight if the weather obliges."

Yesterday, the gap between the Earth and the moon closed to its shortest point, known as the perigee - a distance of 221,525 miles.

The last time the moon was this close to the Earth was in 1948.

Monday's event was billed as the biggest and best in a series of three supermoons. The first was on October 16 and the third is due on December 14.

If you managed to snap any pictures of the supermoon last night, please send them to digitalmedia@london.newsquest.co.uk