Ryan Tubridy has revealed that he sought therapy to help him deal with “really dark” emotions in the aftermath of the RTÉ payments controversy.
Speaking to the Irish Times, the former Late Late Show presenter said the period after the scandal left him feeling “constantly attacked” and “hung out to dry”, reports Breaking News.
“I wasn’t out, but I was down. I was on the ground. I saw myself as a character in this story that I wasn’t writing. I was being buffeted all over the place. It was traumatic. I won’t sugar-coat it and say: ‘Oh, it’s fine. That’s life.’ It’s not life. It wasn’t normal,” reports Breaking News.
The controversy came to light in June 2023, when it emerged that RTÉ had understated Mr Tubridy’s earnings by €345,000 between 2017 and 2022, reports Breaking News.
This arrangement allowed RTÉ to publicly state that his annual pay was under €500,000, when in reality his overall earnings were higher.
Part of his income was covertly paid to him by RTÉ through Renault, the former sponsor of The Late Late Show, using a so-called “barter account” based in the UK, reports Breaking News.
As reported by the Irish Times, an investigation by accountants Grant Thornton found that neither Mr Tubridy nor his agent, Noel Kelly, had been responsible for setting up the arrangement.
Nevertheless, the fallout resulted in a dramatic fall from grace, reports Breaking News.
Mr Tubridy acknowledged that he should have questioned RTÉ’s published pay figures at the time, but told the Irish Times that he could not be held accountable for the entire organisation.
“I think if I had my head screwed on better, and if I was a bit more attentive to that side of my life, I would have shouted louder. That’s on me. I accept that,” he said, reports Breaking News.
However, he also made clear that he could not “take the blame for the entire organisation”.
Drawing a comparison between his mental state at the time and that of George Bailey, played by James Stewart in the classic Christmas film It’s a Wonderful Life, Mr Tubridy told the Irish Times that the level of criticism he faced led him to seek therapy, reports Breaking News.
Through counselling and the backing of those close to him, he said he came to realise that he wanted to “embrace the world” once more.
Mr Tubridy also married clinical psychologist Clare Kambamettu last month, reports Breaking News.
He added that he is grateful for the support he continues to receive from ordinary Irish people and admitted that he previously took things “way too seriously”.
“I used to be too sensitive,” he said. “I’m a different person now to who I was a couple of years ago. I’ve evolved.”, reports Breaking News.
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