Ryan Tubridy spoke for the nation of Ireland this morning as he displayed his astonishment at a new trend in the UK – Zoom nannies.
The RTE star was bemused as he read aloud some of the details of what many across the pond are calling a “godsend” for mothers struggling to work from home.
“Would you leave your child with a Zoom nanny?” he asked listeners.
“That’s what they're doing in the UK.”
Tubs’s scepticism was obvious as he quoted an article describing a four-year-old boy who his mother said was “being held in thrall not by me but by a nanny on Zoom, who lives more than 100 miles away.
The Dubliner continued to read from an article that painted a picture of a four-year-old in the UK whose face “was trained on a laptop screen, his conversation was with a stranger and when he reached out, his fingers grazed polarised glass rather than skin.
“That's a bit grim, isn't it?” said a baffled Tubridy.
“That is virtual nannying. Virtual nannies – not sure about that one.”
Closer to home, Tubridy has been busy in recent weeks, offering tantalising hints about the possible themes of this year’s Late Late Toy Show.
Last week, he sent fans into a frenzy with a brief but telling teaser.
The RTE host, an outspoken advocate of mask-wearing as the Covid-19 pandemic rages on, played a parody Disney-like tune that urges people to mask up.
And as the ditty reached its crescendo, the Dubliner giggled: “And that’s the theme for this year’s Toy Show.”
He quickly followed up by assuring listeners: “That’s a joke.
“Couldn’t it be, though?”
