For the discerning appraisal of our Álainn or Appalling readers this week is RTÉ’s peripatetic presenter, Kathryn Thomas. The tantalizing Mzz Thomas has trekked far from her native Blockbog Road, County Carlow, at the helm of RTÉ travel show No Frontiers. But Thomas has definitely not been the sluggish sun-lounger type. Her career as a professional globetrotter over the past decade has seen her taking on all kinds of only-for-the-brave-of-heart challenges; such as bungee-jumping in New Zealand, playing American Football in the United States, and co-hosting Winning Streak with Marty Whelan.

Thomas first broke into broadcasting while studying Arts in UCD (English, Sociology and Information Studies). After an open competition, she landed her first presenting job on children’s programme, Rapid. Shortly after, she progressed to the enviable position of travel-show host on No Frontiers, which was an impressive achievement for the then 21-year old. After ten years at the helm, Thomas’ tenure on No Frontiers appears to have come to an end (The show is on hiatus for one year and whether it will be resumed will be re-evaluated in 2011) but there appears to be no sign of her slowing down. She is currently in triathlon tr-43nbgs90hy… sorry, I dropped my keyboard…*ahem*… triathlon training. As for her wanderlust? Well, that shows no signs of abating. Her most recent project, The Festival Roadshow, was a three-part series which took her and co-host, Rob Ross, on the summer festival circuit around Ireland. The programme kicked off at the Galway Arts Festival, then beetled down to the Killarney Summerfest, before finally wrapping up and at its final destination, the Kilkenny Arts Festival.

Over the past few months, Thomas has occasionally stepped in for Ryan Tubridy on Radio One’s The Tubridy Show (Weekday mornings, 9.00am). Her first stint in radio has been well-received; and probably due to her immensely likeable and outgoing personality which would find a snug fit in the leisurely, jovial timbre of The Tubridy Show. And her dulcet-sometimes-gravelly voice was certainly a welcome addition to my morning wake-up routine. What’s next for Thomas? It’s anyone’s guess but the Montrose rumour-mill speculates that she may be a late-summer addition to The Afternoon Show. Thomas herself however is keeping tight-lipped about her future:

When people ask me where I see myself in five years time I’m so bad at answering that type of question, because I’ve always been somebody that lives from day to day. To have worked on No Frontiers for the last ten years has really been my dream job, so I’ve already achieved that. For me it’s not about having the ‘chat show’ or ‘day time show’ it’s about working to my strengths, and for me those strengths are working with people.

So, delectable or detestable: what say you of Kathryn Thomas?

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