150KTubs - future career in Virgin Radio and other soulful pursuits **Mod: Read OP**

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122017908#Comment_122017908

I don't think that he is an intellectual pygmy. He appears to be an ordinary person who was promoted beyond his abilities and who, without the PR support infrastructure of RTE, is finding it very difficult to reestablish himself outside of what must have been a rather institutionalised existence in RTE as an "RTE personality". No Irish national broadcaster would hire him after he was dumped by RTE. He went from Covid hero to zero in the space of a few days after the 150K payments issue emerged.

He's gone from fronting the main Irish TV talk show and almost daily appearances on RTE radio to having a radio show on a small London radio station that syndicates the show to a few Irish local radio stations owned by News UK. He's gone from being, as the Tubridy fans were once keen to remind us, "the most trusted man in Ireland" to being a nobody. In Goodfellas terms, he's gone from spaghetti and marinara sauce to egg noodles and ketchup.

Regards…jmcc

bureau2009

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/121937780#Comment_121937780

And the real question is should Ray D'Arcy be on RTE Radio AT ALL?

StevenToast

Its a remarkable fall..….....flogging a podcast.......2 johnnies stuff......Tubridy was meant to be the next gaybo...uncle tubs...100s of thousands of euro for a few hours work a week with 4 months holidays every year......

How did it come to this?!!

Tow

I see the NK crew have picked up and used my Desert Island Discs with books comparison. It is great to be quoted in the national press, even if not acknowledged.

Bobson Dugnutt

The dude is a millionaire who has a national profile, a happy family, lots of friends, and has been very successful in his career.

Some of the absolutely venomous abuse he gets on Twitter especially is from middle-aged men who are by any metric, complete and utter losers. The criticism here is very mild in comparison.

dxhound2005

A sadness has descended on the thread.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018428#Comment_122018428

Another possible title for his autobiography: "150,000 Reasons Why"?

Regards…jmcc

dxhound2005

His Ghost Writer should be able to come up with something better than that. Maybe one of his low paid Ghost Readers could be persuaded to do the job.

Tork

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018551#Comment_122018551

Is that the best you can come up with? Unless he was careless with his money or had made poor financial decisions, it's a no-brainer that he'd be very wealthy by now. God knows, RTE paid him enough over the years. I would hope that he has a happy family life, and that he has friends. It's the sort of thing everybody should have in their lives, regardless of what their career is.

As for the rest of what you've written, I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree. Has his career been "very successful"? That's an interesting question to ask, especially now that we're seeing how he's faring outside of RTE. It is true to say that many plum presenting jobs came his way in RTE, but whether that was because of his talent or because he knew the right people, that's certainly up for debate.

I, like many other people on this thread, have taken the time to listen to his Virgin radio show. It has been a revelation but not in a good way. What he is presenting is the sort of radio show that many DJs in Ireland could do with their eyes closed. In theory it's a show that's beneath his talent and should be something he can do without breaking into a sweat. All any of us has to do is tune in any given day and we can hear for ourselves how it's going. If he's so talented and successful why isn't he making any impact in the UK? Why are other radio stations there clamouring for his signature? Why isn't he popping up as a guest anywhere? I don't count Terry Wogan's son's podcast or an interview on Times Radio to be meaningful in any way.

It's also very disingenuous to assume that everybody who isn't slavering over his every word is a middle-aged male loser. I don't agree with people abusing each other on Twitter but they aren't everybody who's commenting on Tubridy. You don't have to be a hate listener to observe that Tubridy isn't very good at his job after all and that he got high ratings because he was handed bomb-proof gigs.

NIMAN

I think this could be a risky podcast for him.

Once the topic of conversation is books in general, he'd need to control the tangents or he could end up getting asked about things he's read himself by guests, and he could be found out.

I have always maintained that at best Tubs is a casual reader, no more obsessed than the average reader, who often wouldn't even tell you they read books. He tries far too hard to tell us so often how much he loves books, and to be photographed holding books, that I think it's all an image thing.

Rick O'Shea would be safe when it comes to casual chats going off topic, as he is genuinely well read. Tubs could be found out.

Terence Rattigan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018617#Comment_122018617

what about “Nothing Compares to Me”?

dxhound2005

I wouldn't trust what O'Shea comes up with. When the influencers know that he is reading two books a week, they know he is an easy mark to push their products on to. And he in turn will try to influence the "average reader" whatever that is supposed to mean.

Rick O'SheaSat 2 Mar 2024 at 02:30

This week I want to start with an admission. Before the mid-2010s I read about 14 or 15 books a year. Every time I went into a bookshop (which was frequently — I was still buying them, of course) I’d feel a buzz of low-level anxiety about the tidal wave of new books that looked unmissable to me. At the rate I read, I’d get to a tiny fraction of them, so I decided to do something about it. It changed my life, personally and professionally.

In a moment of (possibly alcohol-assisted) insanity at Christmas 2013, I decided to read 100 books the following year. It’s roughly two books a week. Not impossible, but it would take some doing. I said it out loud on my radio show and on social media so that I would have witnesses and no way to back out.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018799#Comment_122018799

Great. It even has a Sinead O'Connor angle. :)

Regards…jmcc

yagan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122017894#Comment_122017894

You don't do self awareness I see.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018837#Comment_122018837

How do you think that books are promoted by publishers?

Rick O'Shea has built up a following of people who think that his book recommendations are worth considering. Tubridy doesn't have quite the same following and this podcast seems to be an attempt to rebrand himself after the RTE and Virgin Radio gigs. It is really the same thing that he's been doing for years on his radio show but allows for a new set of questions for his guests. And there's even a misery porn slot in it. How could Tubridy fans not like it?

Regards…jmcc

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018895#Comment_122018895

How does O'Shea turn that following into money?

Bobson Dugnutt

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018871#Comment_122018871

I’ve read 19 books so far this year, some of them quite literary. Voracious reader across many genres. Limit my genersl internet usage to just 75 minutes per day. Easy to track this across the iPad, iPhone and Mac. I believe it’s very important to see boundaries on this tbh. Makes for a happier and more fulfilled life.

Beechwoodspark

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018772#Comment_122018772

Any awkward questions or “gotcha” moments will be well edited out before public airing, NK media will make very sure of that.

yagan

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018947#Comment_122018947

Then you should appreciate that the internet is the greatest communications revolution since the printing press. Some people use it compliment and deepen their pre internet reading habits.

You don't use it that way obviously.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018936#Comment_122018936

His website ( www.rickoshea.ie ) might be a clue. Think that he also has a book club with 40,000 members. But this is the Tubridy thread.

Regards…jmcc

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018772#Comment_122018772

In my opinion it's not the way that the alleged podcast will be about books that'll be the issue.Its the fact that it's a podcast at all,he'll be very exposed as the figures will be there for all to see.No spin,no NK bluster tactics,just numbers.

I don't hate Tubridy, I never warmed to him as he was completely see through and often disingenuous when on the Late Late.I also found him to be totally unsuited for the role and a terrible talk show host.

The whole payments scandal and subsequent performance at the PAC made me actively dislike him.From the scandal itself to the Renault gigs to saying he'd pay back the 150k to handing in the documents at the last minute to actually being reinstated but being so arrogant he managed to fook that up to "I love your county" .......it was all so brass neck while pathetic at the same time.

Let's just say I'm not rooting for him in any of this

He's already been found out in the UK,the podcast is just the final nail in the coffin.

It really is a remarkable fall from grace.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122019141#Comment_122019141

It has all the makings for a bestseller book and perhaps a Netflix movie.

Regards…jmcc

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122004876#Comment_122004876

Along with Cathy Kelly, Amy Huberman, Marian Keyes and who ever else is doing the rounds with a new book to premote.

Why a book that made you cry. FFS, Everyone wants someone to cry during an interview hoping it will go viral. It is so transparent.

How about a book changed your view about something.

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122005033#Comment_122005033

Most of the Easons I have been outside of Dublin. Have more stationary in stock then books. If you want a recent release or something in their top 10 you are ok. Great if you want Dan Brown. Not so great if you want something by Thomas Aquinas.

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122006182#Comment_122006182

It is a pretty good podcast. Once you acept Richard Osman loves everthing and that Marina Hydes wiki quotes her as saying she is Piers Morgans best mate.

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122006865#Comment_122006865

I can't imagine well. Any time I heard she came across as incredibly negitive and unlikeable.

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122017632#Comment_122017632

O'Shea seems to have a genuine love of books. I am not his biggest fan and think he is a bit of a lightweight. But he really does like a good book I think he might have run one of those god awful 52 books in year things. With his followers on X formally known as Twitter.

With all that said, he was an awful choise for the RTE poetry show. I remeber when he was being asked about his favorite poets and I think his choices tallied with his leaving cert poets.

Stick to the books Rick.

Bobson Dugnutt

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122018972#Comment_122018972

I use the internet extensively in running and operating my business, for learning and education, and for keeping up to date with news and current affairs. I limit “casual browsing” to 75 minutes per day. I personally think spending more time than that online is a total and utter waste of time.

Doomscrolling through Twitter, getting angry on Reddit and message boards, staring gormlessly at TikTok and the like.

I know Tubs said he doesn’t use the internet much, so getting through a book or two a week would be no issue for him. I hope to have gotten through 50-60 by the end of the year. I’d suggest it’s a much more fulfilling use of one’s time than wasting one’s life online unsuccessfully trying to convince a complete stranger to change their mind.

Bellbottoms

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122017049#Comment_122017049

I am doing the lords work here. I have read it so you don't have to.

1. George’s Marvellous Medicine - He then goes on to say it could be any book by Roald Dahl really and writes about how Dahl made him a better person. Ok Ryan, but why chose GMM over The Twits or BFG. This does not bode well for your show if just throwing out names is what you expect your guests to do.

2. Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro - I haven't read this one.

No real explaination as to how it made him cry. Just that the ending is sad.

3. Chronicle of the 20th Century

Yeah I don't really get why this one changed his life. Something about liking the pictures and "Amongst
the photos and news stories featuring politicians like JFK and Winston Chruchill, there are glamorous shots of The Beatles and Frank Sinatra. ".

Oh it ignited his love of history my bad.

4 - He was going to name his biography "Mugged by God in a hoodie". That one is never going to work, it would focuse to much on his pay scandel and its aftermath. But always good to roll out O'Connor. Helps with the SEO.

He has opted for the Peace in the Valley. Which strikes me as a little self serving some might say egotistical. Given RTs life has been almost entierly peaceful.

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122019257#Comment_122019257

Rick left X.

https://extra.ie/2023/12/22/entertainment/celebrity/rte-rick-oshea-twitter