If you’re like us here at VIP HQ, you’ve already circled all the festive telly you’ll be watching over the Christmas break.
And you may have noticed something missing from the schedule.
Yes, there is no Ireland’s Fittest Family Christmas special to be seen.
Last year we saw Irish celebrities take on the iconic Ireland’s Fittest Family challenges.
The likes of Tadhg Fleming, Bláthnaid Treacy, Glenda Gilson and Emma Doran all brought their families along for the special.
They all took part to raise money for their chosen charities.
Unfortuantely, the special won’t be returning this year.
RTÉ confirmed to VIP Magazine: “The celebrity version of Ireland’s Fittest Family is not in the schedule for Christmas.”
This year’s Ireland’s Fittest Family aired it’s finale on Sunday night.
The Stratford family from County Cavan, the Byrnes family from Tipperary, the Bonnar family from Waterford, and the Murphy family from Carlow all went head to head.
But only one of them could be named Ireland’s Fittest Family!
It was the Stratfords who were victorious at the end of the episode to the delight of the family and viewers at home!
For years, the family harboured a belief that the family could excel in the competition, and with some persuasion, one of the Stratford boys, Daniel, convinced some of the family to join the team of four.
Reflecting on their victory, Yvonne, the mother of the family said: “For the last few years, Daniel was confident that we’d be OK at the events, and he eventually bullied us all into applying (except Craig, our eldest, who couldn’t join the team of four).
“Fair play to Daniel, because it’s been a fantastic experience, we’ve loved every minute, the challenges we faced, the friends we met, competing as a family, the excitement of the events, the experience of making a TV Production, and of course being coached by Donncha (“don’t be soft, Patrick!”).
“He’s multi-talented, one of Ireland’s top rugby players ever, a great coach, and a serious messer! We just clicked with Donncha from the start, he asked us for our ideas and tactics, we discussed them, and then he completely changed them (but it worked!).”
