It's hard to believe it, but it's only about six weeks until the 2017 series of Operation Transformation gets underway. That's a lot of minced pies we will have to cram in before the obligatory New Year's health kick begins.
The show is already in the process of picking their leaders, and yesterday, the first one was revealed on The Ray D’Arcy Show on RTÉ Radio 1.
His name is Sean Daly, and he is a 25-year-old working at Specsavers Opticians at The Mill Shopping Centre in Dublin, which is where presenter Kathryn Thomas showed up to surprise him yesterday.
Sean said on The Ray D’Arcy Show: "I'm over the moon, I can’t believe it. I said that if they come in and reveal me the first thing I'll do is give up the smokes, so they’re gone from today."
Sean, who is gay, told Operation Transformation researchers that he doesn’t know how someone else could love him if he doesn’t love himself. He has been so unhappy with his weight that he has been considering going to Poland to get a gastric band fitted.
He has an incredibly supportive family by the sounds of it, who he currently lives with in Clondalkin, and shares a room with his younger brother Darren, who's 19.
Operation Transformation expert Dr Ciara Kelly explained why Seán was chosen for the show; "He's a young man, he’s only 25 years of age . . . at 25 his weight is already holding him back . . . he represents a lot of young men; young men who haven’t found their healthy adulthood path yet."
Season ten of Operation Transformation will air on RTÉ One from early January 2017.
