Tubridy will not be back in RTÉ for the best part of a decade at least
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As long as the media in Ireland, and the Indo in particular, continue to publish articles like the one below then the rte ‘talent’ will continue to believe their own hype. From Operation Transformation to Rose of Tralee: How Kathryn Thomas became an RTÉ power-player | Independent.ie
They also need to ditch the idea that it’s the presenters who bring in the ad revenue. It’s the time slot companies are paying for eg 8-9am not the fact that there seems to be more Morning Ireland presenters than an inter county match day squad.
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What was the nature of the statement tubridy made at the 11th hour when the deal to come back was nearly agreed? It seems it was the tipping edge for Bakhurst, he was able to say there’s a breakdown in trust and it’s best to walk away for now. He gave Bakhurst a great opportunity for an out and Bakhurst has the intellect and deftness of touch to pull it off and not look like the bad guy.
I knew nothing about Bakhurst up to about a month ago but I’ve been incredibly impressed by his ability to get down to business and making decisive decisions, he’s not shirked any media obligations and his communication and ability to handle left field questions with ease has been top drawer. Some ape picked from the country to do it would have been oohing and aaahing at the same questions and saying legal council advises us not to comment on that.
He has dealt with this superbly IMO and the organisation look fortunate to have him now at this time. I think a clean break from Tubridy was the right thing to do to move forward, as whether he likes it or not he is the face of this scandal. I have difficulty enough in feeling sympathy for him as have trouble believing he was getting the guts of 100k extra in salary a year and had no awareness about where it came from. He has been terribly advised from the start to finish.
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The girls are nearly reared now I’d say. The youngest is in college maybe so he has those expenses but I’d doubt he’s shovelling money to his ex at this stage. I think he said before that the children live with him too.
Not sure about the statement but I think the constant leaks from Tubridy/NK about the talks process were really annoying Backhurst so whatever slight he saw in the statement prompted him to pull the trigger I’d say. Also we’re there not leaks against Backhurst from within RTE around the time of his appointment or have I gotten that wrong? Anyway if he swings the axe on Duffy he’ll have done the state a great service.
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I only found out on Thursday that an ex work colleague (I have a lot of them) was in a strong relationship with that ex. He passed away last year at a young enough age.
Bakhurst should be running the country. Sent Tubs and NK home with tae in their mug.
Kevin Bakhurst profile: Like his favourite TV character Tony Soprano he has made sure everyone knows who’s boss
Barely two months in the job, director general sets down major marker at broadcaster
Those close to Kevin Bakhurst say he was ‘crestfallen’ not to get the RTÉ director general job in 2016, when he was edged out by Dee Forbes. Photo: Mark Condren
Catherine Fegan
Today at 02:30
There is a scene in season six of The Sopranos known as ‘Tony’s still the boss’.
In it, in a bid to reassert his authority after being left weak from a near-fatal shooting, Tony Soprano provokes his new bodyguard into a fist fight in front of the crew.
Tony comes out on top, breaking the younger man’s nose before retreating to the privacy of the bathroom, where he vomits blood.
The Sopranos, a gritty TV drama about a mafia mob boss, is Kevin Bakhurst’s, favourite TV show. This week, in case anyone missed it, Mr Bakhurst showed everyone who was boss when he unceremoniously dumped Ryan Tubridy from the airwaves.
The latest instalment of the RTÉ/Tubridy drama draws a line of sorts under weeks of speculation surrounding Tubridy’s future at the broadcaster. But what does the future hold for Bakhurst, a man who only took up the role of RTÉ boss two months ago.
Bakhurst came into that storm and he was a calming force. It really was a very difficult time but he quickly got a grip on the situation
“Well he’s set the marker down now,” said a senior RTÉ source.
“You look at the message that was sent to Tubridy. All the others who are looking to send in agents, looking to get contracts renewed – he has sent a message to them all. If he has to be consistent, you can see what is coming.”
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Bakhurst, by now an unlikely household name, isn’t technically a newcomer. During his previous tenure of employment with RTÉ, he became managing director of news and current affairs in 2012.
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Ryan Tubridy not returning to RTÉ airwaves
His initial assignment was to restore faith in a division that had been rocked by two scandals in 2011 – the edition of Prime Time Investigates that libelled Fr Kevin Reynolds, and the “Tweetgate” incident on The Frontline during that year’s presidential campaign.
“Bakhurst took over after Ed Mulhall (former head of news) left and that was very tough,” said an RTÉ source.
“He was an outsider coming in and the circumstances around Ed’s departure were terrible. Ed was very popular. Bakhurst came into that storm and he was a calming force.
“It really was a very difficult time but he quickly got a grip on the situation and addressed the whole newsroom. He is very direct and straight. You won’t be second guessing him.”
Kevin Bakhurst said negotiations with Ryan Tubridy had ended (Niall Carson/PA)
From 2014 to 2016 Bakhurst also served as deputy director general and was acting director general for six months.
“There was a sadness in the newsroom that he got put into the acting director general role for considerable periods,” said a former colleague. “That’s when he got the taste for the top job. That’s when he moved buildings – he was over in the other building and he was in charge of the big picture.”
When RTÉ director general Noel Curran announced he was stepping down, Bakhurst, as acting DG, was the assumed frontrunner to land the job on a permanent basis.
However, the more commercially experienced Dee Forbes got the job and Bakhurst returned to London to take up a role with British communications watchdog Ofcom.
“He was crestfallen when he didn’t get the DG gig,” said an RTÉ source. “He had really fallen for Ireland by then. There is actually a side of Bakhurst where he is almost like the old Anglo-Irish – they become more Irish than the Irish themselves.”
When the job came up again seven years later, many were surprised the Londoner was willing to return.
“The big thing about him is that he made a very deliberate decision about coming back to Ireland,” said an RTÉ source.
“He had that big job with Ofcom and I’m sure he could have positioned himself for even bigger jobs and better paid jobs over in England, but he had a hankering to return to Ireland.
“He had a lot of time to think about it. He knew the internal workings and the problems when he was here and he came back.”
Since arriving back in RTÉ, Bakhurst has gone out of his way to be visible. He walks the campus and chats with staff about everyday things.
Those who have worked closely with him over the years describe him as “rock-steady and very calm”.
One well-placed source noted that Bakhurst has been more available to the media in the past month than Forbes was during her entire tenure.
“One of the problems with Dee was that she wasn’t comfortable doing interviews or being the face of RTÉ’s story,” said the source. “Kevin has a very different approach.”
Having been involved in senior management for most of his career, Bakhurst is considered to be a skilled decision-maker.
“He won’t pull back from making difficult decisions,” said a former colleague.
“He’s put down the marker with Tubridy and this is how he will continue in how he deals with the authority, the staff, the unions, the Government.
“There is nowhere after RTÉ for him. He is not using RTÉ as a stepping stone and that’s key to understanding him. That’s where he is comfortable in his own skin and his own decisions.
“He is not doing this to become the DG of the BBC. That part of his life is over. If he has any chance of surviving, if RTÉ has any chance, he wants certainty about things. He will be firm and he wants clarity about what he does.”
Much has been made about the fact that Bakhurst refused to deal with Tubridy’s agent, Noel Kelly. Those with knowledge of the new director general’s management style described the statement from Tubridy during the week as “the straw that broke the camel’s back”.
“Bakhurst wanted to do the deal with Tubridy,” said the source. “But he knew the influence the agents have had on the place and it’s something he wants to change.
“He had struck what he thought was a fair deal and as soon as he felt someone was playing another card into the mix he said ‘no, it can’t be like that’.”
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Principles are very important for some people, why would he be sorry, who apologized from RTÉ for scapegoating him all along?
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It shouldn’t bother you seeing as you didn’t watch the LLS or listen to his radio show.
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There’s a human being involved, one I have a lot of time for, nothing to do with his work on tv or radio,
If he had principles he wouldnt have lied about the pay cut
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There’s some amount of spinning going on from all sides in this. A big effort to paint Bathurst as decisive etc now. If he was actually decisive and looking for a clean break he wouldn’t have gone down the road of negotiations etc. Don’t forget he was going to sign the deal with Tubridy. Spin, spin, spin since then though.,
RTE getting upset about a bit of a statement or leaks is beyond ironic. All that the management have done since the beginning of this is to brief against Tubridy initially and then to leak to suit their own side. Game knows game.
I think it’s for the best that Tubridy is gone for a while but I’m a bit embarrassed at some of the lads here falling for the posturing.
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He had to be seen to be offering the olive branch.
You’ve a lot of time for someone whos work you didn’t pay much attention to? Why?
I was told a story one time by the parents of a child with special needs that was attending our school and you couldn’t but realise that he was an extraordinarily decent human, and remains so in this case years later,
Sometimes I am jealous of people with a high profile because it allows them the opportunity to make that difference for n peoples lives, many pay lip service to it but Tubridy goes the extra mile, that’s well known.
I wouldn’t have much interest in that type of radio or the late late
What exactly was he doing for the child? No harm these stories get in the public domain especially about someone who’s livelihood depends on public opinion and who’s fairly unpopular among a big cohort of people
This lad is hit and miss but he has some great ones.
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