READY TO ROAR! ‘LION’ TUBRIDY SET TO BE KING OF TOY SHOW
IT’S always a roaring success... and given this year’s Toy Show theme, the children of Ireland are being urged to ‘run wild’.
For it has been revealed that Ryan Tubridy and his pride of cubs will pay homage to The Lion King on the show.
Tubridy, 48, was busy getting his teeth into the routines yesterday as the finishing touches were made in rehearsals.
And the chat show king couldn’t be more excited. As he pulled out his loudest Christmas jumper yesterday, he revealed he had one message for parents this year: ‘The kids are in charge.’
The Toy Show will be dedicated to the
‘I think it’s time we all had a little fun’
smash-hit Disney movie and though it’ll be a smaller audience again this year – due to Covid – Tubridy said it won’t put a damper on the evening’s festivities.
It will be ‘like the roaring Twenties but for kids’, he proclaimed as he gave the Irish Daily Mail a sneak peek behind the scenes. It’s Tubridy’s 13th year at the helm and he promises another fun-filled night. ‘I think it’s time that we all had a little fun in our lives and we all deserve it,’ he told the Mail yesterday.
‘We have got all the children, goodies and surprises ready to go. I always say to children around this time of the year, and if they are reading this: children, you are in charge. You’re the boss now, for this night and one night only.
‘When the parents of Ireland are peeling their children from the ceilings and walls, I say to them, you’re welcome.’
Fidgets, Pop-its and a Labradoodle called Moji are set to be among the top toys on this year’s toy list. The Toy Show Appeal is also back for its second year after raising €6.6million in 2020.
An impressive Lion King set has taken pride of place in the RTÉ studios, and budding talent Jayden Mpasanje, 12, from Monaghan said he is ‘so excited’ to perform on the biggest show of the year. Standing beside him on set, Tubridy told the Mail: ‘Here a superstar is born. He is very cool.’
Tubridy added that tonight will help children forget about the pandemic for a few hours. He said: ‘Children have been cooped up, locked down and shut in and it is time for us to open the gate and let them run wild.’
Instead of his traditional eclectic mix of Christmas jumpers, Tubs will be wearing recycled jumpers from Toy Shows past. He explained: ‘This year I have recycled my personal collection of Christmas jumpers... I’ve not asked for any new jumpers this year because I am really trying to listen and learn from the next generation. My daughters have been schooling me about all things sustainability and fast fashion, and that is something I’m really trying to take on board.’
The fun kicks off on RTÉ One and the RTÉ Player tonight at 9.35pm.