Weather: Mainly dry cool day

The outlook for the coming days if for mainly dry and quite settled weather initially but a change to very unsettled conditions from St Stephen's Day as it turns very wet and windy, according to the latest weather bulletin from Met Éireann.

Windy and cloudy this morning (Wednesday) with outbreaks of rain clearing eastwards. Clearer conditions with sunny spells and isolated showers will move in during the morning and afternoon. Highest temperatures of 5 to 7 degrees but feeling colder in fresh to strong and gusty northerly winds.

Largely dry and clear tonight with just isolated showers. Frost, with some icy stretches, will develop overnight as lowest temperatures will range between 0 to 3 degrees in a light to moderate north to northwest breeze but fresher on coasts. Some mist patches will develop towards dawn.

Christmas Eve will start mainly dry and clear with some mist patches lingering and isolated showers. Good sunny spells for the first half of the day before becoming cloudier during the afternoon. Highest temperatures of 4 to 7 degrees in light northwesterly breezes.

Thursday/Christmas Eve night: A very cold night. Coldest in Leinster with the clearest conditions and a sharp frost developing. Becoming cloudier elsewhere but staying largely dry overnight with just a chance of isolated showers on northern coasts. Light northwesterly breezes will back southwesterly by dawn, falling near calm at times overnight with mist and fog patches developing. However, this will all be no problem for Santa.

Friday/Christmas: A dry start but generally cloudy for much of the day though occasional sunny spells will develop. Some patchy drizzle will move into Atlantic coastal counties later in the morning, with outbreaks of rain developing towards the evening. Highest temperatures of 7 to 9 degrees. Light to moderate southwesterly breezes will freshen on northern and western coasts during the day.

Friday/Christmas night: Becoming windy overnight with freshening west to southwest winds developing and becoming gusty. Outbreaks of rain and drizzle will push down over the country during the night before more persistent rain pushes in from the northwest towards dawn. Lowest temperatures of 4 to 7 degrees.

Saturday, St Stephen's Day, is promised a very windy day with strong and gusty southwesterly winds with gales or strong gales developing on Atlantic coasts. Persistent rain will extend from the northwest over the country with some heavy falls bringing a risk of spot flooding. Highest temperatures of 6 to 10 degrees, coldest in the north.

Saturday night: Wet and windy to begin but the rain will slowly clear southwards followed by blustery showers, becoming mainly confined to northern and western coasts counties by morning but with a chance of some wintry showers occurring there. Lowest temperatures of -1 to +2 degrees in moderating westerly winds.

Sunday is forecast to be a chilly day. Highest temperatures of just 4 to 7 degrees, again coldest in the north. Light to moderate westerly winds will freshen towards evening. Further wintry showers are expected, most frequent in the north and west. More widespread showers overnight with wintry falls at times. Lowest temperatures of -2 to +2 degrees.

Current indications suggest it will remain very unsettled into next week with rain and showers, breezy at times. Cold too, with some frosty nights.