Gaybo would have been proud of toy show
LAST month’s passing of the legendary RTE broadcaster Gay Byrne inevitably triggered an outpouring of tributes from the four corners of Ireland, as the great and the good lined up to pay homage to a man who helped shape our society throughout the second half of the 20th century.
Byrne’s passing brought into sharp focus just how good a broadcaster he was, on both radio and television. The week of his death was like a Reeling in the Years Gaybo Special, as countless seminal moments from the Late Late Show and his RTE Radio One morning show were replayed.
Moments such as the Bishop and the Nightie, Annie Murphy, Padraig Flynn, heated debates on homosexuality, contraception, the Ann Lovett-inspired letters, all moments in time that have been etched into our nation’s psyche, all brilliant moments of Irish broadcasting, all expertly orchestrated by Gay Byrne.
These moments reminded us just how relevant and cutting edge the Late Late Show was under Byrne. He had an extraordinary ability of being able to measure the country’s temperature on a given topic and was fearless in his execution in debates, often going against strongly held personal beliefs to deliver compelling television.
The Late Late Show of 2019 is a far cry from the Late Late of 1999 when Gay Byrne retired. Gaybo was a once in a lifetime force of nature impossible to replicate. Today’s Late Late Show under Ryan Tubridy is a much safer, sanitised and predictable affair, yet this is not necessarily the presenter’s fault.
Television today is a much more controlled and tame beast compared to when Gaybo was in his pomp. Tubridy brings a different style to the show that is not as universally lauded as Gay Byrne’s but in fairness, who was ever going to live up to legendary silver-haired broadcaster? Just ask his immediate successor, Pat Kenny.
But I think we can all agree that if Gay Byrne was watching the Late Late Toy Show last Friday night, he would have been proud, damn proud. And Tubridy should be too, as he finally has a proper seminal moment of his own to add to the long list of Gay’s.
There were many touching moments on Friday’s show, none more so than the appearance of Sophia Maher, a young girl with an inspirational message: bullies never win.
‘Don’t let the bullies stop you from doing the things that you want to do, and life would suck if everybody was the same,’ said Sophia. It was brave, honest, brilliant viewing and it touched the hearts of us all.
The Late Late Toy Show has morphed from a show about toys to a show about kids that happens to feature some toys. The focus is now primarily the child, not the toy, and Tubridy must take huge credit for this shift.
When Gay Byrne was in his prime, the Late Late Toy Show was all about the toys, as it was such a novelty and a treat to see toys featured on live television. Today, children are bombarded with exposure to the latest products on a daily basis. For the Late Late Toy Show to remain relevant, it needed to change tact and by making the show all about the kids, Tubridy and his team have touched on something special.
What Tubridy needs to do now is carry this momentum forward into the regular Late Late Show and attempt to make it relevant again. Resist the urge to fall back into the safe place of bland interviews with bland ‘stars’ who are only on the show to sell their bland book or plug their new TV show.
Tubridy should be trying to challenge us, excite us, enrage us, provoke us. He should be taking advantage of the massive viewership the Late Late Show still commands.
He has our attention now, let’s hope he doesn’t waste it.