Former RTE broadcaster Ryan Tubridy kicked off his new job, presenting Virgin Radio UK’s midmorning show, on Tuesday.
The London-based commercial radio station is very different from the national broadcaster and this new iteration of The Ryan Tubridy show, where he is more DJ than chat show presenter, is different from his former slot on RTÉ Radio 1; at three hours it’s certainly longer.
He was let go from RTÉ in June amid the payments controversy that engulfed the broadcaster and in which he was centrally involved.
His new show features more music and less talk, but as Irish Times radio reviewer Mick Heaney notes on today’s In the News podcast, Tubridy has brought his familiar-to-Irish ears obsessions with him across the water.
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But will British listeners find his endless references to the Beatles, walks, books, Connemara and pint of Guinness quite so charming? Will they find his repeated mentions of Hyde Park as relatable as all those mentions of Dún Laoghaire pier? Can he do a Terry Wogan and become a beloved Irish broadcaster in the UK - or are those days over?
Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.
