Watch out Brendan O'Connor. Craig Doyle is so confident that his new Saturday night chat show will be a success that he predicts he will be contracted to do the programme again next year. Doyle's show replaces one presented by O'Connor, as RTE weighs up who should get the full-time job. It starts in mid-April, but the Dublin-born presenter expects to be asked back in 2011.

"I am contracted fully to ITV so it will only be an eight-week run this time and nothing beyond in 2010. But I expect to be recommissioned by RTE next year in the Saturday night slot again so I will be back in 2011 without a doubt. ITV know my heart lies in Ireland.

"You can't compare my show with Brendan O'Connor's. They are two separate entities. We are not playing tag here. I didn't see Brendan's show although I saw most of the first episode and thought he held it together well. I don't really want to watch his show, I want to go into my own knowing I am not subconsciously taking anything from his," he said.

Doyle rubbished claims that his show has a set which cost €100,000 to build and has a budget of €90,000 per episode. "Those figures are so far off the mark it is actually funny. We are being made by an independent company so our budget is less if anything".

Doyle said he is "extremely nervous" about the change to entertainment.

"Sport was safe enough, and now I'm throwing myself to the lions."

The show will have primarily Irish guests and will not feature "hard-hitting interviews which upset people".

Radio veteran Gerry Ryan is also rumoured to be in talks with station bosses about taking over the Saturday night slot.