It's not looking good.

Earlier this week we heard that the Beast from the East might be returning, as low-pressure systems in the mid-Atlantic could send sub-zero temperatures and more baltic winds our way. Then, yesterday TV3 weather Deric Hartigan predicted that we could be in for six inches of snow this weekend. The weatherman also shared a graphic on Twitter, showing that up to six inches of snow may fall in some areas of the country by Sunday morning. Now, Met Eireann has given an update and it's not looking too good. The general overview is that St Patrick's Weekend is going to be frosty at night with reasonably light wintry showers during the day. The folks at Met Eireann have indicated that Friday will start out mostly cloudy with some rain in places. It will turn colder overnight with sleet at times and temperatures dropping to 2 degrees Celsius. The roads the following morning will be icy so care will be needed if you're heading out early on St Patrick's Day. For Paddy's Day, they say it will be cold and breezy. The forecast is as follows:

"Cold and breezy on St Patrick’s Day, with a significant wind chill due to fresh and gusty easterly winds. Most places dry, but a few showers are likely, with the odd wintry flurry. Cold and frosty overnight, with clear spells and some sleet and snow showers. The wintry showers will mainly affect eastern parts of Leinster, with just the odd furry elsewhere. But amounts should be small. Lowest temperatures zero to -3 degrees Celsius, with some icy surfaces."

Conditions will remain cold on Sunday with sleet and snow expected at times, but particularly in eastern areas. Higher coastal ground can expect heavy snow. Monday will be the same with the 'odd wintry flurry' expected on the east coast. In other words, we're in for a miserable Paddy's Weekend.