All the people working from home might be better for viewership...
Ireland AM star says she won’t rule out bringing back her TV chat show
ELAINE Crowley has hinted at a possible return for her daytime TV chat show.
The 45-year-old joined Ireland AM in 2021 after her long-running talk show on Virgin Media ended after 10 years.
But Cork native Elaine told the Irish Sunday Mirror: “I wouldn’t rule out bringing it back.
“People working from home now would work out a lot better with the viewership.”
After a year and four months on Ireland AM, Elaine said she feared her new work hours were making her lonely.
She said: “I feel I’ve turned into a bit of a recluse.”
But she added she hasn’t given up hope that her “prince charming” will fly through her window and sweep her off her feet.
Elaine, who split with partner of four years Keith Conlon in 2021, said: “Working on the weekend, it’s impossible to meet people.
HONEST
I’ll not meet someone sitting on the couch
“To be honest, I’m not doing anything about it at the moment, unless my handsome prince comes in through the window.
“I’m not going to meet anyone sitting on the couch in my onesie.”
Elaine said although she has never found the one, she has not ruled out marriage.
She added: “I can never say never because I don’t know what it’s like.
“If you meet someone you really click with and they’re your one, I’m sure it’s gorgeous.
“I’ve never had it, but I would not say it’s impossible. But I would need to get off the couch and get dressed.
“Maybe Mr Tall Dark and Handsome will crawl through my window and greet me in my pyjamas.
“My friends are always trying to set me up with people but they say I’m way too fussy.”
Elaine said you need a thick skin going in front of a camera because TV can be cruel.
She said: “The comments I get on the Ireland AM social media are disgusting, I try not to take notice of them.
“I wore a jumper dress one week and I got loads of comments that it was too short, too long, the wrong colour, that it didn’t suit me.
“I wouldn’t mind but I wore the same jumper dress the year before and they loved it, I think they’re gone mad.
“I’m well used to it, though, those comments don’t affect me.”
Elaine recently opened up on dealing with depression and dysphoria alongside sister Maggie for an Aware campaign.
As she regularly discusses her own battle with depression, she feared the reaction might be negative. She said: “I was worried people would think, ‘Oh here she is banging on about that again’, but I know I helped loads of people.
“Sometimes you will get people who are nasty and say stuff online, like, ‘Oh God, her life is grand’... you have to take that with a pinch of salt.
“Thank God I’m more resilient that way than I used to be. I’ve had a few comments from social media but I don’t think anyone makes that assumption any more.
“You don’t know what anybody’s life is like until you’ve walked in their footsteps.
“Anyone can be down and have mental health challenges.
“The hugely ignorant take the piss and say, ‘What’s wrong with her?’ but there’s nothing wrong with me, it’s just an illness. There is still a stigma [around mental health].
“It’s good for people to see that I can still hold down a job, still have a functional life.
“That it is possible to live and have a fulfilling life, that if you do suffer with depression that you’re not despairing all day, every day.
“There is light at the end of the tunnel.”