This morning’s Manxman sailing to Heysham is going ahead as planned but its afternoon return and crossings later this evening have been cancelled.

It comes as Storm Kathleen hits the island and the Irish Sea, with the Met Office warning we could see winds of up to 55mph over the next few days.

Today’s confirmed cancellations are as follows: Manxman’s 1.50pm Heysham to Douglas; Manxman’s 7.45pm Douglas to Heysham.

This morning’s Manannan sailing to Liverpool and back is unaffected today (Friday).

However with the rest of today’s Manxman sailings being cancelled after this morning’s crossing to Lancashire, the next chance for the vessel to return to Douglas will be early morning on Saturday, which has been brought forward to 1.30am, but remains at risk of cancellation or further disruption.

In fact every sailing up until Monday, April 8 is currently listed as at risk of disruption or cancellation.

The Steam Packet said: ‘The current weather forecast predicts strong to gale force winds and heavy rain, affecting much of the UK and Ireland.

‘We are monitoring weather forecasts closely and will contact affected passengers on any changes to the schedule as soon as possible.’

For the latest on sailings, you can check the Steam Packet’s website.