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RTÉ HAS REVEALED that the theme for this year’s Late Late Toy Show is The Wizard of Oz.
The theme will be accompanied by an impressive yellow brick road/Emerald City set put together by RTÉ production designers.
Speaking at a preview in the Late Late Show studio, Ryan Tubridy said: “I can’t remember the last time I was this excited for the Toy Show given the previews I have had of it this week. It is the thing that is close to the hearts of everyone who will be watching.”
As ever, no details pertaining to special guests have been made public ahead of RTÉ’s flagship Christmas show, which drew an average audience of 1.56 million viewers last year.
Tubridy, who is hosting his thirteenth Toy Show, told reporters it was important that the Toy Show feature kids who “haven’t had the luckiest throw of the dice in life.” Though he avoided specifics, Tubridy also said that the show would feature a “flavour” of Ukraine.
The show will once again run its Toy Show Appeal, which last year raised €6.6million, €1.1million of which was donated by Revolut co-founder Vlad Yatsenko.
As has become the norm for the Toy Show, the live broadcast will be accompanied by Irish Sign Language (ISL) on the RTÉ News channel and RTÉ Player, provided by Amanda Coogan, Jason Maguire and Ciara Grant. The Late Late Toy Show ISL will be available to stream shortly after the live broadcast, according to RTÉ.
RTÉ have also specified that they will provide Audio Description for Blind and Vision Impaired audiences on the Sunday repeat, which will be broadcast at 3.15pm.
The show, which begins at 9.35pm Ireland time, will also be free to stream worldwide using the RTÉ Player.
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It doesn’t look like the counting staff are following the 2 meter social distancing rule if the above photo is of the current count
@Ed Cotter: Foreshortening.
@Ed Cotter: It’s not the actual count…. It’s a picture from an agency… See the credit at bottom of pic.
@Jerriko17: it is the actual count
@Jerriko17: just because it is agency photo doesn’t mean it’s not the actual count. They say it’s the printworks and the count was moved there. Also looks like what was on RTE tv news.
@Ed Cotter: I finding it very hard to get excited about this seanad election I wonder why!
@Tom Malone: OK… Apologies!!!!
@John Buckley: OK… Apologies!!!!
@Tricia G: This comment typifies the low standards of debate in our society at present, instead of exchanging opinions backed by reasoning and facts, people merely indulge in name-calling and shunning those with opposing arguments.
What percentage of electors bothered voting or even received ballot papers. A joke. Retirement home for failed politicians at our expense.
@Valthebear: Which the public had the chance to abolish and bizarrely refused.
@Valthebear: Well neither I nor my husband received ballot papers, and we are both electors. Very dodgy!
@Zmeevo Libe: ditto. I probably wouldn’t have voted anyway, but this is first year they failed to arrive. Got a lot of annoying canvassing bumpf in the post though…
@Rochelle: aye.
@Valthebear: I also did not receive any postal ballot papers for the Seanad elections…my first time to be omitted also. Something smells tres dodgy
@Rochelle: Why bizarrely kept . If you understood the reason for it and what it does then you would understand why it exists.
Certain politicians wanted rid of it as it was doing its job perfectly as is required under the constitution.
Rónán Mullen out!
@Aisling: no one really cares one way or the other
@Valthebear: I do.
@Tricia G: So do I.
@Tricia G: a handful of people on the journal.. Hold the front page. Is it even trending on twitter.. Don’t see it. I’m sorry, when I say the likes of Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (‘wont bé kicking around in the Senate..’ ) Mickey D’ s daughter continuing the fine Irish tradition of nepotism after failing in the Euro elections, and a clatter of failed General Election candidates etc.. This is not what a supposed upper house should be for. We got none of the reform promised after the referendum. So, no, I think it is an utter irrelevance as constituted and merely serves as a sinecure for privileged members of the political class. Would imagine vast majority of country would agree
@The Risen: eh no. Link doesn’t work.
@Valthebear: I agree we got none of the reform promised and I would like to see it reformed. I believe we need a strong second house.
I also still want to see Ronan Mullan lose this election.
@Valthebear: Check out the meaning of nepotism before spouting rubbish.. The president had no influence on the election of his daughter. Just because people of the same family go into politics doesn’t make it nepotism.
@Valthebear: we should ..paid for out of your taxes
@Valthebear: It’s just another one of FGs failures. Enda wanted it gone when he didn’t get what he wanted he spat out the dummy and refused to reform the Seanad
@Jerriko17: you think? You seriously deny being the offspring of a well known politician doesn’t give one advantages when entering Irish politics? If so you must be seriously naive. It’s nepotism pure and simple, regardless of whether it’s FF, FG, or self styled ‘progressives’.
@Valthebear: Having a relative in politics and going for office yourself is not nepotism. You must be wearing a tin foil hat if you think Michael D would be so naive as to pull strings (I don’t even know how!!!!) to get a relative elected.
@Jerriko17: it’s not about pulling strings. It’s enjoying advantages that other less fortunate can never aspire too. It’s about moving in the same circles and being connected to the political classes.
@Pat Coyne: Rónán Mullan represents a Catholic Conservative ethos that belongs in 20th Century Ireland and is increasingly out of step with the country today. It surprised me that he was elected and I will be deeply disappointed if he is re-elected. UCD has a disturbingly strong and unified hard right faction, the same faction that led to the election of Katie Ascough.
Who cares ..
Maybe elites whom have a vote.
House is an absolute undemocratic joke..
@Willy Mc Entire: Sf voted against the abolition of the Senad a few years back
@Willy Mc Entire: Similar to your house of Lords.
@Patrick O Connell: I didn’t. The only vote as a taxpayer I had regards this undemocratic sideline for those voted out was to abolish it.
You and Val as true blueshirts emalgumating as one FFG see no wrong here ….
@Willy Mc Entire: No its not a joke
it pays big money and you will get a big pension
Lets have another vote
@Pat Coyne: Is that right Pat?
I wasn’t advocating for Ronan Mullin not to have the right to say what he believes. I actually support his right to say what he believes. It allows the rest of us to see him for exactly who he is.
I would even like to see him debate his ideas but instead he much prefers to pontificate to the media and imagine conspiracies to distract from his opinions (that, thankfully, have very little support in this country). That was his behaviour throughout the commission on Repealing the 8th. He couldn’t hold his own with the medical professionals so he and Mattie McGrath left the chamber and speechified to the media. It was an obvious ploy to try and distract from the sober and informed opinions coming from those that remained in the Chamber.
I do NOT want that man to be elected to the Seanad. His stance on just about everything utterly appals me and it would be my preference that he get no where near a position of government.
So yes, whilst I should probably not have called him a “dose” (even if it is my personal opinion of him) there is no debate on where he stands.
There is no middle ground we’re going to meet on.
So yes, again I’ll say “I just hoping that Ronan Mullan doesn’t get re-elected.”
Better now?
@Tricia G: I agree. I voted for almost everyone but him to try and get rid of Mullan.
Lisa Chambers!??…..Are they for real!? Seriously……..
@Gazza Lazza: unfortunately so
@Pat Coyne: And Pat do you think you are raising the standards of debate with your comment? It is quite obvious that @Tricia G is referring to Ronan Mullan”s Anti-Abortion stance.. He has been nothing but an antagonist to the women of this country… He feels he has a right as a man to express an opinion on what a woman can and cannot do with her body.
A home for failed politicians
Social distancing only relates to the normal folk
You know the ones left without jobs ,education for their children and broken promises from government that banks will help!!
The politicians still have jobs ,pensions and no problem spending borrowed money. Sure they won’t be around to have to pay it back in taxes.
Why are we not using their pension funds for the good of the country????
@Yasmin Hamid Khan: Overly dramatic.. We’re in the middle of a pandemic and there are thousands in the same boat. Every school in the country is closed and only essential workers should be leaving their homes. When this is all over it’ll get back to normal relatively quickly. The Govt HAVE to borrow money to keep the economy going in the meantime
@Pat Coyne: Debate is a democratic process, this election is not. Of course the citizens will mock and deride it, it’s been that way since Caligula made his horse a senator. It’s all part of a republic.
I hope that’s a stock photo!
I am glad Lisa Chambers has been elected to the Senate, she is an excellent debater and will contribute a lot to Irish politics, after narrowingly losing out on being re-elected to the Dail.
@Paul O’Sullivan: agreed! She comes across as a very competent and able politician. I was disappointed for her when she lost her seat.
@Paul O’Sullivan: is that the same Lisa Chambers
That spent years in the Dáil and couldn’t remember where her seat was when it came to voting.
@Pat Coyne: he wants to put the west back to the 50s with greenways.
@Daniel Howard: he has a right to be elected if he gets enough votes!!!!
Another trough to feed from…should be apologised
I’m in the strange position having 2 senate votes!
@Pat Coyne: Rónán Mullen’s right to free speech doesn’t infer a right to be elected to the Seanad.
Well done good and faithful servants! Come have another dig in the trough!!
@Jerriko17: I do not think a man like him or any man should be allowed to express an opinion that a woman that has been raped and impregnated as a result should be refused the right to terminate, because he thinks it is morally wrong… I am glad that at least the women of Ireland have at least that choice now, to carry and not be forced to carry or go to another country to deal with what must be a very lonely journey for any woman.
I’m shocked and appalled
@Paul O’Sullivan: i believe ronan mullen would say that abortion is wrong in all circumstances, not just the extreme & rare ones that are always trotted out. As for saying he cannot hold an opinion, thats just silly.
@Paul O’Sullivan: same right as you do to criticise him… It’s not illegal yet to express an opinion. If he gets elected… Dems the rules…. Suck it up.
Fine Gael’s John McGahon elected. The guy’s currently being prosecuted for assault, and then there’s also “the twix bar” incident.
Let’s see if the media gives him the same (completely necessary) scrutiny they give SInn Fein politicians. I wouldn’t count on it.
@: What’s the twix bar incident?
@ihcalaM:
He inserted a twix bar into an unconscious man’s a,n.u.s at a music festival. If it was a woman that would legally be considered r.a.p,e
Real charmer.
@Paul O’Sullivan: nothing to do with morals, your view, his view or my view….Termination after 12 weeks is not allowed, even for rape…That’s the law. Nothing stopping anyone campaigning for or against that and until the law is changed we have to live with it.
Really? I was quite impressed with his position on human trafficking, support for people with dementia and special needs education.
What the wonderful Sen Noone???
@IamSocrates: you seem to have a problem with catholics & conservatives. People are free to form their own opinions on religion & politics despite your misgivings. Nearly the entire political & media class in this country form an echo chamber of lefties & anyone who is right of centre is painted as a nazi or potential nazi.
I am at loss why is it mostly bformer TDs in the senate, it should be nurses, doctors, engineers, solicitors, accountants, chamber of commerce Representatives, trade unionists giving a different views on laws
@Des Groome: as opposed to narrow minded liberalism
Jobs for the boys and girls whom the full public decided weren’t upto the Dail
@Jerriko17: Am actually, terminations are allowed by law after 12 weeks.
@Tricia G:
I find all of your big words intimidating and offensive. Less of it.
@Tricia G: he is a dose of narrow minded conservatism yes.
have your say