TV WEATHERMAN Paul Hudson doesn't think a white Christmas is likely.

The Look North weatherman made his forecast while signing copies of his new DVD, Extreme Weather, at WH Smith in Huddersfield.

The 33-year-old, famous for his bright-coloured blazers, said the real cold snap would probably come after the festive period.

He said: "We are due a really nasty winter, but so far it has been quite mild. But usually when we have extreme winters the temperatures really dip in January.

"Even though you can still get odds of 8-1 at the bookies, I don't think we are going to have snow for Christmas."

Paul signed copies of his new DVD and video and Weather Or Not, the book he wrote with former Yorkshire weatherman Bob Rust.

He said people had become even more interested in the weather because of the extremes we have been experiencing and predicted more to come.

"The video charts the blizzards of '47, the terrible winter of '63, the summer of '76 and the floods in 2000."

Next Saturday, Paul, who has been forecasting Yorkshire's weather on BBC1 for more than seven years, will be back in Huddersfield to cheer on his beloved Bradford City in the derby clash at the Galpharm Stadium.

He said: "I can't wait, it is a really big game. I think it will be close and you never can tell how a derby will go, but Huddersfield usually do well against us."

Many of us are. It's a deep-seated and inexplicable desire to have snow at Christmas.

Many of us long for the likes of the scenes depicted on traditional Christmas cards and in works like Dickens books A Christmas Carol or Pickwick Papers.

The interest in snowy Christmases has its origins in the colder climate of the period 1550-1850 when Britain got colder after 500 years of hot summers and mild winters. Winters were particularly persistent and severe -1813/14 was the last winter that a `frost fair' was held on the frozen River Thames in London.

For most parts of the UK, Christmas comes at the beginning of the season for snow. Wintry weather is more likely early in the deepening cold of January.

White Christmases were more frequent in the 18th and 19th centuries, even more so before the change of calendar in 1752, which effectively brought Christmas day back by 12 days.

For many, a white Christmas means a complete covering of snow, ideally falling between midnight and midday on December 25.

However, the definition used most widely, notably by those placing and taking bets, is for a single snow flake (perhaps among a shower of rain and snow mixed) to be observed falling in the 24 hours of December 25.

The likelihood of snow falling depends on many factors, principally latitude and height above sea level.

The highlands of Scotland see snow falling most months of the year, but falls over low-lying areas are usually confined to November to April. However, there have been isolated falls as late as June.

Even if snow falls in December, there is no guarantee that snow will `stick'. On days snow is falling, the temperature of the air above the ground sometimes remains above freezing point - so the snow does not stay for long.

The last white Christmas was in 2001. The majority of showers fell over northern and western areas of the UK.

BOOKIES on the internet were quoting the following odds for snow on Christmas Day:

William Hill 11-2

Coral 7-2

betdirect 5-1