Breakfast At Tiffany's by Truman Capote was selling only a few copies a month in Ireland until Tubridy recommended it earlier this year. It quickly went to number one all around the country.

"It was really noticeable for a book like Breakfast At Tiffany's, " said Susan Walsh, marketing manager of Dubray Books, which has eight branches nationwide. "Because it's an old book, we saw such a dramatic increase in sales - from a few copies a month to being a huge seller."

Even Tubridy himself is shocked. "I couldn't get over the demand for Breakfast At Tiffany's", he told the Sunday Tribune. "It was number one all around the country, and because the show moves around, you'd get a good feel of it in the bookshops and they'd tell you how it was selling."

Tubridy himself is a lifelong book fan. "My first job in RT�? was reviewing books when I was 12. . .

It has just always been a feature of my life, and of my family's life. We're always reading. I suppose it's nerdy but nice."

Tubridy revealed that the introduction of a book club into his breakfast programme was born out of frustration at the lack of a native high-profile club.

"I always thought there wasn't a decent book club in the country, " he said. "I'd go into bookshops and get annoyed by Richard and Judy labels on bestsellers, because it's a British club with British books taking pride of place in the bookshop. All of these things were in our minds and the show had settled and matured, so we tried it and it so happened people liked it."

Laura Murphy, a supervisor for Eason's bookshop at Middle Abbey Street in Dublin, said they were becoming "very aware" of Tubridy's literary influence.

"With Marian Finucane's book club, the titles always sold very well. We'd be aware of the Richard and Judy club too, " she said. "Anything that's reviewed on radio, we'll notice a jump in sales, a good few extra hundred. It's definitely a good thing. . . I think we've been looking for one here for a while."

John Boyne's book first became popular in January, selling around 300 copies a week. Last week, following exposure on the Tubridy Show, it hit sales of 835. "With something like The Boy In The Striped Pyjamas, Richard and Judy would never pick up on a book like that, " said Tubridy.

"This is a book that started selling 300 copies a week when it came out in January, and is back at number one now selling around 800."

Richard and Judy's book club, on their popular afternoon TV programme, has enjoyed exposure in Ireland, but the most popular club in Ireland to date was on Marian Finucane's morning show. Tubridy now appears to be taking up the baton.

Oprah Winfrey's book club has been running in America for a decade. Getting a book chosen on that show means almost instant fame and fortune, such is her massive audience. In 1999, Oprah chose Tara Road by Maeve Binchy, and sales rocketed.

Susan Walsh believes Tubridy's initiative is very welcome for the book industry. "They have great potential for authors having a first book out because a lot of those books depend on word of mouth."

And although impressive sales surely showcase Tubridy's public influence, that's not what it's all about for him. "What I really like is people coming up to me and saying, ?I'm not a great reader but I picked up that one you were talking about.'"