The Gerry Ryan Show begged him "on bended knees" and "over whiskey" to stay with 2fm but at the same time Ryan was impressed that Tubridy was willing to compete with him directly. Tubridy has credited Ryan with being "one of the few gentlemen in [RTÉ]", saying he had been "very kind to me when I started out in RTÉ making tea and coffee and right all the way up to the very day I got "The Late Late Show" job". In 2004, Ryan was the subject of controversy when he cancelled an interview with the Taoiseach of the time, Bertie Ahern. Ahern had
Ryan Tubridy Tonight" on RTÉ One. He later left RTÉ 2fm for a number of years to present weekday morning radio programme "The Tubridy Show" on RTÉ Radio 1, but returned to RTÉ 2fm in 2010 to present his current weekday morning radio show from 09:00 to 11:00, following the termination of "The Gerry Ryan Show" with the presenter's sudden death. He has also hosted the Rose of Tralee contest on two occasions. He is a supporter of Esker Amateur Boxing Club from Lucan and has publicy backed their Let's Build Esker Boxing Club clubhouse building campaign since 2012. As part of