TV presenter Ryan Tubridy was called a vile homophobic slur while in Dun Laoghaire in Dublin on Monday and explained what happened when he decided to “challenge” the man
Image: Instagram)
TV presenter Ryan Tubridy took a “physical risk” when he confronted a vile man who called him a “f****t”.
The 48-year-old was called the homophobic slur while in Dun Laoghaire in Dublin on Monday and decided to “challenge him”.
Speaking about the incident, the RTE Radio One host got emotional as he explained what happened to him.
Ryan explained: “It came to a head as I walking through a street in Dun Laoghaire as it happens with my eldest (daughter).
“She kept a distance as I walked along the street. A young guy of about 25 or 26, I’d say he spends a fair bit of time in the gym.
“As he passed by, he said: ‘Tubridy, you f****t’. I had two things I could do with that, I could stop or keep going and not cause a fuss.”
He continued: “I think I would have let myself down if I didn’t challenge him.
“It was a physical risk because he was a big guy, if you know me, you know I’m not one of those.
“He said that he didn’t believe in my beliefs. He squared up to me and it was menacing.”
However, Ryan ended up walking away from the threatening moment.
He went on to explain how he was upset as it was in his hometown where people are usually “so nice” and “lovely”.
“But I was troubled by this guy,” the presenter added.
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Unfortunately, it wasn’t an isolated incident.
Around five minutes of walking away from the person yelling slurs at him, another young man began to shout at him too.
“He started roaring in my face, ‘you’re the virus, you’re a paedophile virus’,” he said.
The second man covered his face when Ryan took out his phone to film him.
“My beliefs, let’s talk about it. All I’ve said since this pandemic began is ‘let’s get through it together’. That’s my belief,” Ryan said, referring to the man who yelled at him as he didn’t believe in the presenters ‘beliefs’.
“If I believe the vaccine is going to help us all? Yeah. Look at the figures in hospitals today.
“The people who are sick in hospitals, for the majority, are people who have not been vaccinated.”
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