It’s snow joke…. sorry! But if you, like us, are dreaming of a white Christmas this year then we’re very sad to hear the news that we’re all about to be disappointed.

According to data released from the Met Office recently, we’re apparently more likely to see snow at the end of March than at Christmas!! Between 1981 and 2010 there were an average of 3.9 days of snow falling in December compared to 4.2 days in March.

But, this is not unusual. Over the last 57 years since 1951, the Met Office has collected data from weather stations around the country. And in a whopping 31 of those years, only 1% of weather stations across the country reported snow. In another 10 of those years, less than 5% reported snow. There have only been three years out of those 57, that more than 50% of weather stations have reported snow lying – these were in 1981, 2009 and 2010. But if a white Christmas to you means snow actually falling (rather than existing snow lying on the ground) then there were only two years where more than 50% of stations reported snowfall – 1993 and 2004.

With so little snow around on Christmas Day, why do we associate Christmas with snowflakes, snowmen and idyllic scenes of children sledging and throwing snowballs, when the reality is usually damp, grey drizzle? Some historians believe that between the mid 16th century and the mid 1800s, there was a mini “ice-age” across Britain which resulted in colder winters and more snow. These centuries were greatly influential on art and literature, and so many of our stereotypes and ideas about Christmas (and many other things) were formed then.

Sadly, it’s looking unlikely that we can expect a Snowy Christmas 2014. The weather predictions for next week across Snowdonia show rain and drizzle for the early part of the week but a little more sun for the later days. Forecasters say it may be a little chillier than it has been, so it may be a cold Christmas, if not a white one. To see some snow, we’ll have to peer out of the window across to the beautiful mountain tops of Snowdonia!