RTE are so out of tune

Eurovision chief says station lacks funds for contest, WildYouthsingety insists they ey a never given chance

- SANDRA MALLON

RTE’S Eurovision chief has blamed the station for being “underfunded” when selecting acts for the contest.

Michael Kealy was speaking after Wild Youth crashed out of the semifinal and will miss the showpiece in Liverpool on Saturday night. Ireland hasn't qualified for the Eurovision since 2018 when Ryan O'Shaughnessy represented us with his song Together.

Mr Kealy said: We are extremely proud of Wild Youth - they put on a brilliant performance and were fantastic representatives for Ireland."

He hinted his agreement with some fans that The Late Late Show may no longer be the best platform when choosing our acts.

The RTE man said: "The Late Late has served it well in a way because it has been the only vehicle of a sufficient scale we can do.

"It is pretty much the best thing we can do in that studio.

"One of the things I always say, and I'm not going to win any popularity contest, is RTE has been chronically underfunded for decades and it shows particularly when it comes to putting on entertainment shows.

"We do news and current affairs and dramas very well but when it comes to entertainment you need scale to make it look as impressive.

"Our facilities in RTE aren't sufficient for shows like that.