Late Late Toy Show night is a big occasion for many households, and helping make the magic accessible to all is presenter Sarah-Jane O'Regan.
Sarah-Jane O'Regan and Jason Maguire helped host the show in 2023 when they worked with hearing interpreters Ciara Grant and Amanda Coogan who many will remember from previous Toy Shows.
This year, Sarah-Jane and Jason are back alongside Ciara and interpreter Lisa Harvey-Coleman.
@rtelifestyle Meet the #ISL Deaf interpreters for the #LateLateToyShow 🧏 #irishtok #deaftiktok #signlangauge ♬ original sound - RTÉ Lifestyle
So, as Sarah-Jane returns to screens for the 2024 extravaganza to pass on the magic of Christmas and the Toy Show - something she says is an honour - what do we know about her?
Family life
Sarah-Jane will already be a familiar face to many through her work on RTÉ's ISL News & Weather team but away from the screen, she's a mum-of-three.
She’s mum to twins Conor and Louisa who were born in 2016 as well as daughter Jora who joined the family in October 2019.
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In 2022, Sarah-Jane celebrated 10 years of marriage with her partner Conan.
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Sarah-Jane is also a teacher in the Holy Family School for the Deaf and has worked as an ambassador for The Very Pink Run.
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Cancer battle
Sarah-Jane returned to work on RTÉ in April 2023 after eight months off while she recovered from a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.
She was diagnosed with DCIS after going to the doctor to investigate a different lump which turned out to be breastfeeding-related.
DCIS is a pre-invasive form of breast cancer where the cells in the lining in the ducts of the breast tissue start to turn into cancer cells.
Speaking about her diagnosis on Twitter at the time, Sarah-Jane said: "I was so lucky it was caught during a mammogram before it became invasive.
"The initial mammogram was to investigate a lump that turned out to be a breastfeeding-related lump. So I always say that my baby girl+breastfeeding saved me!"
I'm back on #islweather after being off for 8 months.I've been recovering from a double mastectomy and reconstructive surgery.i'm thrilled to say I'm in good health.Grateful I get to pick up where I left off!Having a glass of wine now to celebrate this achievement! #DCISsurvivor pic.twitter.com/4duckODmr8
— Sarah-Jane (@electricginger) April 30, 2023
Sign language at events
As well as providing ISL in weather reports on RTÉ, Sarah-Jane has also provided ISL for musical events including recent concerts by S Club 7 and Melanie Martinez at 3Arena.
Sarah-Jane said her night at S Club 7 was an "amazing experience" and shared a video of herself on the night on Instagram.
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Working on The Late Late Toy Show
Sarah-Jane said she was delighted to work with the Toy Show in 2023. Ahead of the show, she said: "It's amazing, two Deaf interpreters presenting the Late Late Toy Show.
"It's massive, it’s a massive step for RTÉ to take. The value they put on us, the inclusion. For Deaf children to see us as role models, that Deaf people can do it and to show society in general that Deaf people can do anything."
She also remembered watching the show as a child. "The Toy Show is really a big part of my life, even since I was small watching the Toy Show. I didn’t know what was going on, children were playing with toys, it was exciting but I didn’t know what they were saying and I missed a lot," she reminisced.
"But I still felt the magic in some ways. Then, when I was asked to be involved as a Deaf interpreter I couldn’t believe that I could access the magic and then transform the magic into ISL and give it to other kids."
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*This article was originally published on Evoke.ie.
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