MICHAEL PUTS THE ‘FREEZE’ ON A WHITE WINTER AND ARCTIC-LIKE CONDITIONS

homersimpson

Ireland’s most famous amateur weatherman has said there is 'SNOW WAY' Donegal is going to be plunged into artic-like conditions this winter.



Postman Michael Gallagher has successfully predicted snowfalls for the last number of years from his base in the hills of Donegal.

But Michael, from Glenfin, says he simply can’t understand why everyone is saying the country is going to be covered in snow and freezing conditions for months on end.

“I simply don’t know where these forecasts are coming form. I can see no signs of it.

“We might have a little snow but I don’t think it’s going to be as bad as the past couple of years.

“I can see us getting plenty of rain and frost but I can’t see the huge falls of snow and freezing temperatures which everyone seems to be predicting,” he said.

Michael, who famously forced bookmaker Paddy Power to pay out €70,000 in early bets after predicting a white Christmas two years ago, says there will be plenty of storms.

Only recently he was approached by a customer while doing his rounds who had found a frog behind a flowerpot.

“When we lifted the flowerpot the frog just wouldn’t move. I just knew that was a bad sign.

“A couple of days later we had those bad storms. The frog knew it was going to be bad and didn’t plan on moving anywhere,” said Michael.

Apart from Michael, another hugely-respected weatherman who does not think we are going to shiver too much this winter is Peter O’Donnell from www.irishweatheronline.com.

He said January next could be the coldest month but it is unlikely to be as bad as last year.

"In general, this is not expected to be as dramatic as last year, and the severe cold is not expected to continue through most of December.

“There may be roughly equal spells of mild and cold weather with strong winds, some heavy rainfalls and some snow or ice."

http://www.donegaldaily.com/2011/10/19/michael-puts-the-freeze-on-a-white-winter-and-arctic-like-conditions/

Lucreto

Didn't he say snow for St. Paddys Day back in March.

I think he got lucky last Winter

edit I was right

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/kfeyqleyqloj/rss2/

Elmer Blooker

"there may be roughly equal spells of mild and cold weather with strong winds, some heavy rainfalls and some snow or ice"

cant go wrong there Mr Postman :rolleyes:

ronnie3585

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

"there may be roughly equal spells of mild and cold weather with strong winds, some heavy rainfalls and some snow or ice"

cant go wrong there Mr Postman :rolleyes:

In other words, there will be some weather sometime in the future.

alfa beta

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

"there may be roughly equal spells of mild and cold weather with strong winds, some heavy rainfalls and some snow or ice"

cant go wrong there Mr Postman :rolleyes:

That quote is taken from MT's forecast - not the postman's

The tax man

alfa beta wrote: »

That quote is taken from MT's forecast - not the postman's

Copped that myself.

Pangea

Lucreto wrote: »

Didn't he say snow for St. Paddys Day back in March.

I think he got lucky last Winter

edit I was right

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/kfeyqleyqloj/rss2/

He didnt get it right 100% of the time.
But what forecaster has?

Roughly 70% of the time hes been very good at his predictions.
Last winter wasnt just a lucky one, if you live in Donegal you would know this as hes been forecasting for many years and its only in the past year or 2 the media from Dublin has jumped on the bandwagon.
He said there would be a white Christmas in 2009 when no one else was calling for it and we got a white christmas here in Donegal that time. Over the years here in Donegal he was very good for predicting the snowy periods.
Hes observing nature so of course hes not going to be right all the time, but many believe its a good indication as to what weather to expect.
If people want to make fun of him for his methods then thats human nature, but seeing responses such as above about "cant go wrong there mr.postman" when infact the quoted forecast was from M.T. just shows how people can react differently depending on which mouth the words are coming out of.

M.T. Cranium

My first response was to say, I would request that you leave me out of this, I have no agenda concerning other forecasters or their methods, and discussions of their forecasts or methods should focus on those subjects, not my forecasts which are probably over-exposed in other threads already. Thanks.

I guess it was the newspaper story that made the connection, so apologies to forum posters, but same principle applies, would suggest this thread from now on just deals with the postman's winter forecast, discussions of mine are already available elsewhere. Thanks x 2.

leahyl

So the postman is basing his prediction on a frog not moving from behind a plant pot.............:rolleyes::pac:

Let's just wait and see! I'm trying to ignore the negative and focus on the positive!

munsterlegend

leahyl wrote: »

So the postman is basing his prediction on a frog not moving from behind a plant pot.............:rolleyes::pac:

Let's just wait and see! I'm trying to ignore the negative and focus on the positive!

i'm predicting a washout particularly for Munster from Sunday on until Tuesday! Leahyl i think you should start a thread..

maxer68

Its difficult to predict Irish forecast 5 days in advance, so 3/4 months is away with the fairies.

The article lauds hime for being correct 2 years ago, but this guy has been forecasting for years. - And quite wrong on every other occasion.

force eleven

He's very wishy washy about his forecast to be honest. It's easy to say November and December will be mild months because they usually are. The last 2 years have been exceptional and unlikely to be repeated soon, if the law of averages is used. January and February have been relatively kind in recent years, so you might expect them to be a bit harsher this winter, as I do.

leahyl

munsterlegend wrote: »

i'm predicting a washout particularly for Munster from Sunday on until Tuesday! Leahyl i think you should start a thread..

:pac:......*goes to start thread...................just kidding! You should start it - I support you in your endeavour!:pac:

munsterlegend

leahyl wrote: »

:pac:......*goes to start thread...................just kidding! You should start it - I support you in your endeavour!:pac:

thanks for the backing..not sure if i could handle the pressure though or that it justifies a warning just yet...it would probably end up dry and sunny if i did.

pauldry

No harm having lots of weather threads (even if they are all about same weather twice!)

Lots of the time I go on this im looking new threads on weather to read.

Theyr like buses. You wait ages for a new one to come along then two of the same one come along!

Elmer Blooker

I don't think it's possible to do a long range forecast no matter who's doing it!
The UK Met Office, with all the technology at their disposal stopped doing them as it's just not possible to predict the weather months in advance.
That's my opinion anyway!

munsterlegend

leahyl wrote: »

:pac:......*goes to start thread...................just kidding! You should start it - I support you in your endeavour!:pac:

As requested!

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75032292#post75032292

desolate sun

God this thread is the most depressing thing Ive read today.
I want snow so badly. Please be wrong, Mr postman!

gbee

This morning, inspired by "The Postman", I lifted a flower pot and sure enough there was a frog refusing to move, so I got out my power hose and blasted him and his company of worms down the drain.

There now, Postie's spell is broken ... bring on the snow.

jimmy.d

gbee wrote: »

This morning, inspired by "The Postman", I lifted a flower pot and sure enough there was a frog refusing to move, so I got out my power hose and blasted him and his company of worms down the drain.

There now, Postie's spell is broken ... bring on the snow.

frog is only looking for somewhere to hibernate with so little water they have no where else so it will find the dampest spot nothing to do with the weather

nacho libre

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

I don't think it's possible to do a long range forecast no matter who's doing it!
The UK Met Office, with all the technology at their disposal stopped doing them as it's just not possible to predict the weather months in advance.
That's my opinion anyway!

I think they still do them, they just don't make them available to the public. if you recall last year it leaked to one of the English papers that the UK met office had warned the British Government to prepare for a severe wintry outbreak in early December.
They must have seen similar patterns upstream, albeit using different methodology, to M.T. in the months beforehand, that made them confident a severe cold spell would take place. Their monthly update from late October onwards was spot on, but after Christmas their updates were less accurate- so as you say no long range forecasts will get it right all of the time. This needs to be kept in mind as it's unfair and wholly unrealistic to put any forecaster on a pedestal.

damino

I remember reading the postman's prediction for the past two years. He was right about a white christmas but remember some of the prediction he made was incorrect. A question should be asked of his prediction; if there is a lot of frost in his forecast, does that make his winter a cold one? Some of the statement seems to be plagiarism from MT's forecast. So maybe the journalist took a bit from the Postman's and a bit from MT's and but the two together to get a reaction from us all. I was checking on the Internet with regards to sunspots, and one or two websites have said the nos of sunspot have gone up recently but the activity rate from each is still quite small. Hopefully we will all get snow this winter.

fizzycyst

gbee wrote: »

This morning, inspired by "The Postman", I lifted a flower pot and sure enough there was a frog refusing to move, so I got out my power hose and blasted him and his company of worms down the drain.

There now, Postie's spell is broken ... bring on the snow.

Jesus, that was a bit harsh, the poor frog. I think they're a threatened species too.

amacachi

Elmer Blooker wrote: »

"there may be roughly equal spells of mild and cold weather with strong winds, some heavy rainfalls and some snow or ice"

cant go wrong there Mr Postman :rolleyes:

Almost as good as MT Cranium's stuff, the entire summer it was sunshine and showers in different areas, really insightful.

lord lucan

Gwan the Postman. Bring on a mild winter with frogs leppin' about the place with wild abandon!:)

irish1967

M.T. Cranium wrote: »

My first response was to say, I would request that you leave me out of this, I have no agenda concerning other forecasters or their methods, and discussions of their forecasts or methods should focus on those subjects, not my forecasts which are probably over-exposed in other threads already. Thanks.

I guess it was the newspaper story that made the connection, so apologies to forum posters, but same principle applies, would suggest this thread from now on just deals with the postman's winter forecast, discussions of mine are already available elsewhere. Thanks x 2.

Would take story and it's associations with a pnch of salt.
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=75010669

jonnyj

anyone notice all the berries on the hawthorns and skeachs this year, they're totally red with them

its an old wives saying that the more berries the harder the winter, must be no skeachs in donegal

dsmythy

I wish the snow obsession would end. Last year is a once in every 20 year event. Come back to me in 2030

The guys prediction is pretty much describing a typical Irish winter. As are others. So I'm going to go with a typical Irish winter happening and not expect anything out of the ordinary.

NIALL D

that postman is away with the frogs / i mean fairies :eek::D

gbee

dsmythy wrote: »

I wish the snow obsession would end. Last year is a once in every 20 year event. Come back to me in 2030

I'll almost certainly be dead by then.

gbee

NIALL D wrote: »

that postman is away with the frogs / i mean fairies :eek::D

♪ ♫ Frog legs and fairy wings ♪♫,
Flower pots and dew, ♪♪♪
All kind of everything ......... ♫♫♫ :cool:

NIALL D

gbee wrote: »

♪ ♫ Frog legs and fairy wings ♪♫,
Flower pots and dew, ♪♪♪
All kind of everything ......... ♫♫♫ :cool:

hahaha hahaha

zenno

well michael I think he's wrong. my prediction indicates winter weather to be the same or slightly worse than last year and I predict snow for the 16th of november. I have the skis ready as well.

delw

fizzycyst wrote: »

Jesus, that was a bit harsh, the poor frog. I think they're a threatened species too.

well they are in gbee's garden :D

Mountainsandh

That fellow seems famous for some reason, am I the only one who has no clue about the sad frog meme ???

Anyway, I'm French, and I take exception to this thread.

On a more serious note, I know a lot of old farmers/and non farming old country fellows, and I must say after a few years of listening to them I'm still 50/50 on this. Look at the "Red sky at night shepherd's delight, red sky in the morning shepherd's warning" phrase, it is pretty much accurate no ? They do get a fair bit of accurate weather predicting.

fizzycyst

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0auCDOERZyE

kstand

That frog could have been off its head. We have a cat at home that's off its head and we used to have a dog that was off its head and I once saw a totally intrepid mouse that had to be off its head so it's entirely possible that the frog was off it's head.

Now, on a related note, how lush are the bushes etc with berries this year? Was out in Chesunt near london 3 weeks ago and there seemed to be huge amounts of berries etc on the branches and briars.

maxer68

Mountainsandh wrote: »

On a more serious note, I know a lot of old farmers/and non farming old country fellows, and I must say after a few years of listening to them I'm still 50/50 on this. Look at the "Red sky at night shepherd's delight, red sky in the morning shepherd's warning" phrase, it is pretty much accurate no ? They do get a fair bit of accurate weather predicting.

For immediate weather pattern, most farmers would have a general knowledge and be fairly accurate - but its based experience. Red Sky at night - usually signs that high pressure overhead, thus a dry night is in prospect.

However, predicting more than a week ahead with any eal accuracy especially for ireland, is just not possble imo.

A general trend - yes, but saying snow will fall in 1st week January or such like is crazy.

btw - would the hysterical tabloids tell us where the snow forecasted for October is gone?

zenno

Jean Byrne doesn't look optimistic. time will tell.

eddiem10

kstand wrote: »

That frog could have been off its head. We have a cat at home that's off its head and we used to have a dog that was off its head and I once saw a totally intrepid mouse that had to be off its head so it's entirely possible that the frog was off it's head.

Now, on a related note, how lush are the bushes etc with berries this year? Was out in Chesunt near london 3 weeks ago and there seemed to be huge amounts of berries etc on the branches and briars.

Maybe it licked itself??:D
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XWN3OXTsMlw&feature=related

bb1234567

zenno wrote: »

Jean Byrne doesn't look optimistic. time will tell.

where did you get that, is it from last year?

nacho libre

fizzycyst wrote: »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0auCDOERZyE

A genuine classic! That song brings back memories:D

fizzycyst

nacho libre wrote: »

A genuine classic! That song brings back memories:D

It sure is a classic. I still remember that Christmas it was released, I was only a tot......ah the memories *sigh

gbee

That's Donegal postie was in hot water today on the Joe Duffy show as garden centre managers blamed him for the downturn in business that they are suffering.

But Joe stood up for himself vehemently, claiming that the article printed in some paper was in fact not his forecast, even if he was attributed to them.

Joe Duffy show today at lunchtime [Thurs: 17/10/11]

bb1234567

gbee wrote: »

That's Donegal postie was in hot water today on the Joe Duffy show as garden centre managers blamed him for the downturn in business that they are suffering.

But Joe stood up for himself vehemently, claiming that the article printed in some paper was in fact not his forecast, even if he was attributed to them.

Joe Duffy show today at lunchtime [Thurs: 17/10/11]

why would there business go down if hes saying this winter wont be that cold?

Lucreto

bb1234567 wrote: »

why would there business go down if hes saying this winter wont be that cold?

People won't buy plant bulbs now that will flower in the spring as they are afraid they will die when the ground temperature goes below zero.

Also some plants don't like extreme cold, look at all the palms and furns that dies last year because of the cold weather.

duckysauce

The guy from the garden centre was the most ignorant, ill informed person , I have heard in a long time.

LoL at Joe asking him were all his customers vegetables

suitseir

Well the last day of October, and while there is a wind blowing it is extremely mild!!!

This weekend last year was much colder so maybe Mick the Postman is right!!!!

Looking at forecast into November, temps look like they will be pretty ok (as in no minuses)!:)

Tomcat2

All of this sounds a little bit like snake oil.Having said that humans have studied nature for hundreds of years to forecast weather.It's nothing new.
There are numerous places in the world where they have something similar to groundhog day.

homersimpson

There is a programme about Michael on TG4 Sunday evening at 9pm

Sponge Bob

He has been proven absolutely correct so far, fair play Michael.