We all know the song ‘I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas’ but unfortunately for us on the Isle of Man, we’re going to have to carry on dreaming.

That’s because forecasters at the Ronaldsway Met Office say that the chances of snow falling on December 25 this year are ‘minimal’.

With just a week to go until the big day, the long-term weather forecast is not offering much hope of turning the island into up a magical winter wonderland.

But it’s not all bad news as we’re set to say goodbye to the wet and windy conditions that have been plaguing the island for the past few weeks.

Forecaster David Britton says the weather is likely to change as we head into Monday next week.

‘The chances of a white Christmas are pretty minimal’, he said.

‘This unsettled weather will stay with us through to the end of the weekend and it will start to improve on Monday.

‘At the beginning of next week there will be a ridge of high pressure and it will be mild with temperatures of around 6/7C.

‘Christmas Day itself is looking fairly dry and the winds will not be too bad which is how much of next week is looking.’

While we may have to leave the sledges in the garage for a while longer, it is at least looking good for those festive walks to burn off some of the Christmas food we will no doubt be gorging on.

Before then though, we’ll have to muddle through the miserable conditions forecast for the remainder of this week.

There will be outbreaks of rain on Thursday with strong winds and a risk of gales later with highs of 11C.

There will be some sunny intervals on Friday but with outbreaks of rain and strong winds.

Saturday will see some heavy rain at times and strong winds at first while Sunday will be cloudy with wet spells and strong winds developing.