Claire Byrne has emerged as the hot favourite to replace Ryan Tubridy on the Late Late Show, according to Ladbrokes.
When ‘Tubs’ announced his departure last week, bookies installed Miriam O’Callaghan as the early favourite, but following a surge in support in recent days, Laois native Claire Byrne is now top of the pecking order after her odds tumbled to 6/4 from 3/1.
Veteran RTE broadcaster Miriam O’Callaghan is still in the mix at 3/1 followed by fellow RTE star Ray D’Arcy who rounds off the top three at 8/1.
Brendan O’Connor, who is also no stranger to chat show hosting duties, is another popular bet at 10/1 to take over the Late Late Show gig, as is Tommy Tiernan who can be backed at 16/1.
Sarah McInerney is currently priced at 18/1 to swap her Radio One afternoon show for the prime-time TV presenter slot.
The bookies are also offering odds of 18/1 for Love Island winner Greg O’Shea, the recently announced co-host of Virgin Media’s Six O’Clock show, to make the jump to RTE for the Late Late Show job.
Ladbrokes has also reported interest in Marty Morrissey, a national treasure in Irish GAA circles to swap his RTE Sport gig for the ‘Late Late’. The Clare native can currently be backed at 33/1.
Greg O’Shea isn’t the only Virgin Media name in the mix with Ireland AM’s Alan Hughes an outsider shot at 40/1, along with the Six O’Clock show favourite Martin King and Political Correspondent Gavan Reilly who are both at 50/1 as things stand.
Nicola McGeady of Ladbrokes said:
Almost one week on from Ryan Tubridy’s announcement that he will depart the Late Late Show, there is still no sign of the frenzy around his replacement letting up and if the latest money is anything to go by, it’s looking very likely that Claire Byrne will be sitting in the iconic presenter’s chair next year!