The weekend’s weather forecast is a reminder that summer is well and truly over

Some would say summer never even started in the first place.

It’s Friday and time to be looking forward to the weekend, but we have bad news for anyone whose plans revolved around there being some pleasant conditions over the next few days. Met Éireann has promised a cool and unsettled weekend of weather ahead, with very strong winds, a risk of thunder and rain pretty much a constant from now well into next week. There will be some sunshine early doors on Friday, but showers will begin to become heavier and more frequent as the day goes on, with Munster and south Leinster set to experience the worst of them and at risk of thunder at times. Despite highest temperatures of 17 degrees, it will feel cool, and gusty winds will begin to get stronger on Friday night and into Saturday morning, when they will become strong to near gale on the Atlantic seaboard. As on Friday, there will be some sunny spells on Saturday and the winds will begin to abate by Saturday evening, but showers will remain and it’s not going to get any better on Sunday. A cloudy start to the day will eventually lead to rain throughout the country, with heavy and prolonged showers a probability in Ulster, Connacht and west Munster. Strong winds will again make their presence felt, particularly in coastal areas in the west and south, with gales and large waves likely to arrive by Sunday evening. The early indications for next week aren’t a whole lot better; probably best not to spend a whole lot of time outdoors between now and this time next week.