Ireland’s Eurovision hopefuls, four-piece pop-rockers Wild Youth, will be appearing on The Late Late Show on Friday evening amid the controversy surrounding the group cutting ties with their creative director for controversial comments made on social media.
In a shock announcement this week the band, which comprises of Conor O’Donohue, David Whelan, Ed Porter and Callum McAdam, parted ways with their creative director Ian Banham who was set to work with the musicians on their entry, We Are One, for the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool next month.
The bombshell move came weeks before the semi-finals take place on May 9, with singer Conor saying he felt "sick" reading Banham’s online views relating to trans people.
READ MORE: Wild Youth trying to 'stay positive' - after J.K. Rowling accuses the band of 'misogyny'
Tweets by Banham were recently highlighted by a fan account on Twitter.
Banham, who has worked with artists such as Lily Allen, Kylie Minogue and Cheryl, has been accused of making tweets targeting the trans community, describing it as a "cult" in one such post.
In a statement, Conor said: "First off, I want to apologise with my whole heart to anyone who has been hurt or even had to read such horrible tweets.
"He goes against everything I stand for, his tweets make me feel sick reading them. Writing this song and writing these lyrics was writing about what I believe in.
"Acceptance Unity and kindness. Ian will have nothing to do with Wild Youth on our Eurovision journey. Again, from the bottom of my heart. I’m sorry to anybody who had to read these tweets and was affected by them."
This week on The Late Late Show, host Ryan Tubridy will finally reveal the projects from The Late Late Big Repair Challenge, where challengers had just five weeks to restore items that were fit for the skip but close to their hearts.
Tubridy will also be joined in studio by their mentors, Home Rescue: The Big Fix's Pete the Builder and Gaff Goddess Laura De Barra. In the spirit of upcycling, viewers will meet six Irish businesses with a twist, all of whom have turned trash into treasure.
Ryan will then speak with the Irish woman gracing the cover of this month's ground-breaking edition of British Vogue, Sinéad Burke, about what it feels like to be a little person fronting one of the world's most iconic magazines and why she feels there is no reason the change she has spearheaded in the fashion world can't be applied everywhere to make the world more accessible and equitable for people with disabilities.
Host Tubridy will speak to Tony Delaney. As a successful businessman, running a company with a turnover of millions, Delaney looked to have everything figured out, but all his life he was carrying around a secret, one that nearly consumed him. Indecently assaulted as a child, he finally found justice in court earlier this year.
Dublin singer-songwriter, Saibh Skelly will perform Superficial as the night’s musical guest.
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