As freak storms battered mainland Europe, the Irish summer yesterday delivered a shock of its own - a second consecutive day of uninterrupted sunshine.
Clouds gave way to blue skies and temperatures soared to a dizzying 20 degrees across the country.
However, Met Éireann moved quickly to dash expectations of a last-gasp August heat wave, predicting that heavy rain and cold winds would sweep in over the country from the Atlantic this morning.
And although sporadic sunshine will return on Sunday, the threat of showers will never be far away.
The prospect of a drenching is unlikely to dissuade the estimated 250,000 set to attend a massive outdoor concert in Dublin's Phoenix Park and three high profile GAA matches over the weekend however.
Close to 100,000 will converge on the Phoenix Park for the O2 in the Park show from noon tomorrow.
Juxtaposing teen pin-ups such as Samantha Mumba, Ronan Keating and Bellefire with rock acts including David Kitt and Turn, the event offers an intriguing snapshot of the Irish music scene.
A ceiling has been placed on capacity and with all tickets distributed organisers have cautioned would-be gate-crashers to stay at home.
Parking is also forbidden at the venue.
A Dublin Bus shuttle service will depart from George's Quay from 11 a.m. Tickets cost €4.
Meanwhile, more than 130,000 GAA fans are expected to flock to Croke Park over the weekend.
A 79,000 capacity crowd will watch this evening's Bank of Ireland Football Championship replay between Dublin and Donegal.
Some 50,000 will witness Kilkenny and Tipperary compete for a place in the Guinness Hurling Championship final tomorrow.
Tickets for the game are available from Croke Park and also the official GAA website.
In Navan, Sunday's football quarter-final between Sligo and Armagh is a 29,000 sell-out.
With the the total attendance for the football championship predicted to breach the one million mark this weekend, the season is on course to become one of the most popular and profitable yet for the GAA. A spokesman, Mr Danny Lynch, said both football fixtures were sold out by yesterday afternoon.
"They would have done so sooner but we held back some tickets," he said.