Hopes of snow are being blown away (literally).
Any chance of a white Christmas is set to be blown away (literally) with furious winds and torrential rain set to sweep across the UK.
In the coming days, gusts of up to 80mph and heavy downpours will arrive as a festive gift to us all ahead of the big day.
Santa’s sleigh may be thrown from pillar to post when he sets off on Christmas Eve if the forecast is anything to go by.
Wednesday will see a bleak day on the whole with ‘rain for many’, according to the Met Office, and those in the north and west ‘likely to see the highest rainfall’.
Forecasters said: ‘A notably deep area of low pressure will track to the north of the UK over the Norwegian Sea through Wednesday night and into Thursday.
‘This will bring very strong winds and heavy showers to a large portion of the UK, with a yellow national severe weather warning covering Scotland, Northern Ireland, northern England and the north of Wales.’
The ‘danger to life’ alert for wind will be in place for the entirety of Thursday from midnight until 11.59pm.
The Met Office’s deputy chief meteorologist Chris Almond warned that ‘strong winds are likely to develop across a large area of the UK’ when the weather front arrives.
He said: ‘We’ve issued a large yellow warning area where there’s a potential for some impacts, but gusts of 50-60mph are possible for large parts of central and northern areas of the UK.
‘Exposed coasts and high ground could see gusts of 70-80mph at times.
‘There’s a chance this low pressure will continue to exert its influence into Friday, so it’s important to stay up to date with the latest Met Office forecast.’
So, what chance is there of us seeing some snow for Christmas this year?
Well, it’s a largely ‘showery outlook’, forecasters say, and any wintry showers are ‘most likely confined to high ground in northern Scotland’.
Expert Mr Almond said: ‘On Christmas Day there’s a chance of showers almost anywhere, and across the high ground of Scotland in particular, these could fall as sleet and snow, which would technically make it a White Christmas, as we only need to see a single flake falling.
‘However, for the majority of the UK it’s unlikely that we’ll see significant snow, but it will likely feel cold in a strong breeze.
‘Beyond Christmas Day a westerly influence on the weather remains the most likely scenario, with further rain or showers and strong winds for many, and again mainly over the hills of Scotland, some sleet and snow is likely, as is often the case in December. Further details will be available closer to the time.’
If, as Bing Crosby famously sang, you’re dreaming of a white Christmas, you might just be better placed dreaming for a windy Christmas.
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