Byrne may upstage Miriam for coveted job

Barely had the shock of Pat Kenny’s departure from Montrose registered in the national consciousness before the bets were on.

Who could replace the mid-morning behemoth in the RTÉ Radio One Schedule? Pat Kenny has been broadcasting in that slot since the early 1980s: Today with Pat Kenny is a show that is built around his ability to commandeer RTÉ’s substantial news ship once Morning Ireland ends with the 9am news.

While sneered at for his stewardship of the Late, Late Show, there are few that will deny his perspicacity when it came to current affairs interviewing. Kenny is also singular in that, Frontline tweets aside, he is perceived as broadly balanced and regularly sought out by embattled politicians seeking fair play. And while he was cringe inducing doing TV light entertainment, he pulls it off with gentlemanly aplomb on Today with PK.

So who would we put our bets on? There are a lot of people looking at the Queen of Montrose, Miriam O’Callaghan. Her current affairs CV couldn’t be better: She’s presented the station’s flagship current affairs show Prime Time since 1996, chaired the leaders debate for the last three elections and been a linchpin of election coverage; she is also a solicitor and a former BBC Newsnight reporter and BBC prod-ucer.

Miriam has also displayed her versatility in recent years dipping into light entertainment with Saturday Night with Miriam. Miriam Meets on Sunday mornings is also a serious ratings puller. O’Callaghan has also been manning the John Murray Show during the radio presenter’s recent absence.

A transition to the heavier-hitting 10-12 shot could be seamless for a presenter who can demonstrate both warmth and steeliness, but much is likely to depend on whether she wants her career to go in that direction. A highly ambitious go-getter, could this job be the perfect stepping stone to the ultimate prize? But then could Kenny’s departure allow for the rehabilitation of golden boy Ryan Tubridy? His star may have waned in the public’s eyes with his less-than-capable handling of the Late, Late Show and his cringe-inducing discomfort in old pal Gerry Ryan’s seat at 2FM.

But RTÉ management have invested hugely in Tubridy — will they brush aside his lack of news pedigree, vaunt his supposed passion for politics and all around nice-guy affability in the hope that he could appeal to the conservative middle class listenership over at Radio One? RTÉ is not known for its brave decisions.

However, the one young buck that they have nurtured in Donnybrook is Claire Byrne. With her stint on the Daily Show with Daithi Ó Sé and her resoundingly capable handling of the Late Debate on RTÉ Radio One, the former TV3 and Newstalk presenter proved herself to ‘upstairs’ and was given the keys to RTÉ when she was introduced as the third presenter along with Pat and Miriam on the new-look post-Reynolds Prime Time. There are some who now argue that Byrne is a more dogged current affairs interviewer than Miriam.

However, when Byrne was mooted as a replacement for Anne Doyle, she wisely pronounced: “I definitely wouldn’t be jumping up and down to replace an icon”.

What is sure is that Kenny’s departure will mean that the RTÉ Radio schedule will be torn up. It’s unlikely that it will be as simple as slotting Miriam, Ryan, or Claire into PK’s seat.

The ripples will be felt everywhere. Aine Lawlor is very comfortable

and capable filling in Marian Finucane’s weekend morning slot. Could Kenny’s departure mean she eventually gets her own show? What about Phillip Boucher-Hayes, always the fill-in, never the permanent host?

And shock of all shocks, imagine if they could get the ultimate political animal, Sean O’Rourke out of that comfy News at One slot? Kenny on Newstalk v O’Rourke on RTÉ? Now that would be riveting.