It seems that the 100mph winds which came with Storm Ali are to be viewed as a walk in the park compared to the four months of heavy snow forecasters are predicting will hit Scotland this year.

In stark contrast to the spectacular heat during the summer months, starting as early as November, a meteorologist has claimed that wintery and icy conditions will cripple the country due to 'supercharged' low-pressure systems.

Extreme cold is expected to hit earlier this year while an active Atlantic storm pattern pushes sweeping blizzards across the country.

James Madden, forecaster for Exacta Weather, told the Express that the mercury is set to plummet during the second half of October.

November could bring the first snowfall of the season with James also believeing that a White Christmas could be on the cards.

He said: “November is looking like a mixed bag of weather this year and there are signs that amidst stormy weather will be the first proper snowfall, temperatures for the month are expected to possibly be below average.

“All our long range projections have been showing for quite some time that December is likely to be a colder than average month overall and we are expecting several widespread snowy periods early in the month.

“The period between Christmas and New Year is looking interesting as there are likely to be some major low-pressure storm systems hitting the UK and these will clash with much colder air over the country bringing potentially crippling snowfalls and ice storms."

Last winter, the country battled through heavy snow showers in the 'Beast from the East' which brought about weather warnings and led to major disruptions across Scotland.