THE LATE LATE Toy Show has kicked off the festive season in Ireland, with jokes, tricks, songs and dances, and making a holy show of the presenter, Ryan Tubridy.
This year’s theme was Frozen, meaning the programme started with Tubridy dressed as a giant buck-toothed snowman. The outfits didn’t get much better after that.
Of course, the kids on the show stole it.
Here are some of the highlights.
Ella is quite an accomplished golfer for her age, and sunk some brilliant short puts live on air, before being asked to help Tubridy do the same.
She then got to meet Irish golfing champion Shane Lowry, who gave her a signed flag from the 2019 Open Championship he won, and offered to bring her and her family to next year’s Open.
We can’t describe it – a blend of rap, dance and lovely Corkonian tones – but it was brilliant fun and very catchy.
Rebecca and Jenny let Tubridy away with nothing – they started with telling him about dolls that represent kids and show that “kids voices matter”; moved on to relentlessly blowing bubbles into his face; to wrapping him up as a human burrito and throwing food on top of him. Sure where else would you get it.
Ryan Tubridy introduced Tom from Carrick-on-Shannon as his new favourite person. You can see why.
Tom’s granny Pat knitted Tom’s jumper, and gave Ryan a hand-knitted tank top. Tom explained how he plays Sylvanian families with his grandmother, and makes jigsaws of the two of them, too.
She also made a surprise appearance on the show, and agreed to be Tubridy’s granny too.
Oisin and Molly performed a number of astounding tricks including: making a tape measurer stay extended, giving two fingers through a handkerchief (the broadcast-friendly kind of two fingers), and opening a foot-step bin.
Molly, who’s aged five, is the leader of the magic act, which has been going on “since the summer holidays”. Molly can also make chocolate mysteriously disappear.
Sophie, who loves the School of Rock and the Diary of A Wimpy Kid books, began by showing us toys that make audio recordings.
She says that she uses them to send audio recordings to her brother Cian, whose aged 5 and in hospital, receiving treatment for leukemia.
After Ryan offered to give Sophie and her mother a trip to see School of Rock musical, Sophie was delighted and got a bit upset.
“If I were Cian, I’d want a big sister like you,” Ryan said, after giving her a hug.
He then gave a hello and a moment to all children who are in hospital. A beautiful tribute.
Bullies never win. Sophia was both told this and told others to believe it too.
After telling Ryan Tubridy that she is sometimes bullied for how she’s different, and how her hair looks, Ryan told her that he thought she was really cool, and to not give into the bullies.
Sophia then said to other children who might be bullied:
Don’t let the bullies stop you from doing the things that you want to do, and life would suck if everybody was the same.
“They’re all at home watching me on the telly – so who’s the weirdo now?”
Ella, a young boxer, was showing Ryan Tubridy The42.ie’s colouring book She Can! and teaching him some training techniques, when her hero Katie Taylor came around the corner to surprise her.
She got a pair of gloves worn, signed and framed by Taylor, and also got offered a training session with Taylor – which Ella was only too delighted with.
Quite a heartfelt, thoughtful Toy Show this year.
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