Tom Dunne: My Lovely Horse and the relief Father Ted will bring to Eurovision night

RTÉ have made a great call to run with Dougal and co on Saturday night

The Father Ted episode with the Eurovision reference will be screened instead of this year's song contest on Saturday night.

Wed, 13 May, 2026 - 21:00

Tom Dunne is a music-lover extraordinaire who, as well as presenting radio and TV shows, can also be seen in the wild as the lead singer with Something Happens.

RTÉ’s decision to screen the Father Ted Eurovision episode in place of the actual Eurovision couldn’t have come at a better time. The grimness of the world has become inescapable, and when one of the previous great escapes no longer even feels like that, then “who you gonna call”? Ted, Dougal and Jack, obviously.

Regular readers of this column probably already know that I have a soft spot for Eurovision. I grew up in our golden age. Winning Eurovision was something we were good at when we weren’t good at much else. Before we could row, swim, kick a ball or box we could win Eurovision.