Ryan Tubridy joining Virgin Radio in London — but show will also air in Cork
Ryan Tubridy to join Virgin Radio UK and Dublin’s Q102 with new mid-morning show from January 2024
Former Late Late Show host Ryan Tubridy has revealed the next step on his career path — a radio job in Britain.
Tubridy, who stepped away from his role on the long-running chat show and who has been at the centre of the RTÉ pay scandal, revealed he is to join Virgin Radio as a presenter.
The presenter left RTÉ after it was revealed that the station under-reported the salary paid to Tubridy and failed to disclose €345,000 of additional payments to him between 2017 and 2022.
On Thursday, Tubridy spoke on the Chris Evans Breakfast Show on Virgin Radio about the move, after teasing some upcoming “big news” on his Instagram account to his 255k followers.
“I’m in the back of a London cab heading to a building near the River Thames where I’ll be making quite a big announcement in my world,” he teased in advance.
Evans described the news as a "massive announcement" as he welcomed Tubridy to the station confirming he will host the station's mid-morning show.
He will helm the mid-morning show on Virgin Radio from 10am to 1pm Monday to Friday from early January 2024, joining the weekday on-air crew, including The Chris Evans Breakfast Show with cinch, Jayne Middlemiss in the afternoons, and Kaiser Chiefs frontman Ricky Wilson at drivetime.
Tubridy will also be broadcasting live from London simultaneously on Dublin’s Q102 and he will present a dedicated Irish weekend show across Wireless Ireland stations, including Cork’s 96FM and Live 95 in Limerick.
"This is quite surreal, I'm desperately excited," Tubridy said. He will begin his new gig on January 4, the date of his late father's anniversary.
He told Evans they are "kindred spirits" because of their love of radio and he said the move puts him in mind of the late Terry Wogan who also made the move to the UK. "He was a lovely representative of our country in this place. I'm thinking about him a lot today."
He reminisced about his 14 years as Late Late Show host, naming Ed Sheeran, Russell Crowe and future coworker Chris Evans as his favourite guests.
Tubridy will be moving to London and has been looking for a new home, hinting Islington and Primrose Hill are contenders at the moment.
Ryan said in a statement: “I couldn’t be more excited to start this new chapter with Virgin Radio. New city, new station, new beginnings. I love radio and what a joy to be following the legendary Chris Evans every morning.
“It’s been a pleasure getting to know my new friends at Virgin Radio, all of whom have been warm, engaging and very entertaining.
“And big thanks to the London Irish who have made me feel so welcome in recent weeks.
“To the listeners, wherever they might be, I urge you to join us on this adventure every weekday morning, there is much fun to be had!”
He first fuelled rumours of a move to Virgin Radio in September when he joined Evans on air for an impromptu interview where Evans greeted him by saying: "Welcome aboard! When do you start?"
Virgin Radio UK Content Director, Mike Cass, said today: “I am beyond delighted that Ryan is joining the amazing roster of presenters on Virgin Radio UK. He has been the preeminent broadcaster in Ireland for years and Virgin Radio will bring his warmth, humour and unique charisma to the UK audience properly for the first time. He will be the perfect mid-morning companion and the ideal tag-partner for Chris Evans.”
Tubridy stood down as host earlier this year but was continuing to present his weekday show on RTÉ Radio One when the furore over incorrectly disclosed payments RTÉ made to him erupted in the summer.
At that point negotiations over a new radio contract for Tubridy were halted and he was taken off air amid the crisis that engulfed the organisation.
RTÉ director-general Kevin Bakhurst later re-entered negotiations with a view to securing Tubridy’s return to the airwaves on a new contract but those talks broke down in August after the director-general claimed the presenter was not taking sufficient responsibility for his role in the payments controversy.
Tubridy has insisted he was not overpaid by RTÉ, but rather RTÉ underdeclared his agreed remuneration.
Meanwhile, RTÉ has published a new strategic plan on how it will overhaul spending in the wake of the pay scandal, telling the Government that it will cut its workforce by 20%, increase spending on independent productions and cut costs by €10m.
It has also introduced a plan to cap salaries for all RTÉ employees at €250,000, the salary of the director-general.
