The Met Office has been forced to issue rare red warnings for the country as we head towards the final weekend of the month.

WX Charts maps and charts, based on Met Desk modelling, shows a band of wintriness sweeping across the country as we head towards February.

Southwesterly then westerly winds will rapidly increase from west to east Friday mid-morning onwards into the afternoon, with peak gusts of 80-90 mph fairly widely and perhaps up to 100 mph along exposed western coasts.

The UK is bracing itself for one of the worst storms in recent memory after neighbouring Ireland was put on lockdown after a rare red alert - track the storm's path here

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the BBC website. However, if you would like to, you can change your cookie settings at any time.

"It should be noted that there may be a slight reduction in wind strength for a time as the centre of Storm Éowyn passes overhead, this most likely in parts of Northern Ireland and Scotland, before winds rapidly increase again. The wind strength will gradually ease across southern areas later on Friday."

As Storm Éowyn weakens and clears to the northeast of the UK, Saturday will remain a breezy day everywhere with strong winds persisting in the north. It will be drier for many, with showers replacing persistent heavy rain, these wintry in the north, especially over higher ground.

However, a major change in the UK’s weather starts on Thursday, as a front bringing heavy rain moves eastwards through the day. Conditions turn both wet and windy during the early hours on Friday morning as Storm Éowyn arrives, with rain starting off as snow over parts of Northern Ireland, Scotland and higher ground in northern England.

"Whilst there is some uncertainty in the track of Éowyn, a spell of very strong winds is likely, initially southeasterly before turning westerly, with peak gusts of 60-70 mph inland and 80-90 mph along some coasts and hills (perhaps even higher in a few locations)."

Scots dad Andrew Main suffered catasrophic brain injuries after he was attacked by Macauley Ruddock and Joseph Dix.

There are just over two weeks to go until Scotland’s latest bid to become Six Nations champions gets underway.

Ireland and France are expected to tear into each other for tournament glory but Scotland are quietly building up a head of steam