Zig and Zag, Dustin and the other one (Ray D'Arcy - Ed) reunite for the return of family favourite The Den this Sunday. It’s live, seat of your pants TV and it’s aims to turn the craic up from zero to 11.

Here, the Z brothers tell Alan Corr about bringing pandemonium to the pandemic

When Zig and Zag, Dustin and Ray D’Arcy made a brief return last June for RTÉ Does Comic Relief, it was like slipping on a pair of zogabongs and bathing in a warm bath of shameless nostalgia.

"Yes, Ray is worried."

Niall Horan fans may not have been happy but for hundreds of thousands of viewers across Ireland, having the gang back was just what we needed as lockdown began to bite.

And now they’re back for a new run of The Den to bring some fun to the dark evenings ahead.

Were you surprised by the outpouring of love after your appearance on RTÉ Does Comic Relief last June?

Zig: "Absolutely! Of course, we were, yeah! It was crazy! And then all the stuff between Dustin and Niall Horan. That went on for a week afterwards."

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Zag: "That was the first time we ever saw Dustin sweat it; he was genuinely cackin’ himself. It was kinda scary, but we have a surprise for Dustin - we’re going to try and get Niall on the show in a few weeks’ time so Dustin can apologise to him."

Dustin? Apologise?

Zag: "We know. It’s slightly risky but it’s worth a try."

It’s live, it’s no-tech but how like the old Den will the new Den be?

"It’s only one camera. It will be very like the old Den. It might look a bit shinier maybe and . . . well, it’s not going to look much bigger. It kinda looks the same."

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Zig: "Don’t fix it if it ain’t broke. We used to do an hour of live stuff in between the programmes on The Den back in the day so the new show will be like taking the programmes bit out and just doing the whole thing live."

Live TV is notoriously difficult. Of course, you’re professionals but if anything does go wrong, you guys and Dustin don’t have to take any of the blame. All the blame goes to Ray . . .  

Zag: "Yeah, that’s true. Absolutely true."

Zig: "The great thing is that when we used to do The Den we’d always try and catch Ray out. We’d try and trip him up all the time. Lots of fun."

Is he worried?

Zag: "Yes. We’re winding him up but he’s kinda excited as well. You can tell with Ray. He’ll give out to you like a dad does, but he’s got a smile on his face."

"You can tell with Ray. He'll give out to you like a dad does, but he’s got a smile on his face."

You’re trying to get Niall Horan on the show, but can you reveal any of the other guests you might be having on?

Zag: "Well, The Den was never famous for having guests. It wasn’t a guesty show. It was more just the craic so a lot of it is gonna be getting punters on the line, people on Zoom calls, like families."

If you could have a dream guest, who would it be?

Zig: "I think we should get the next President of the United States, Mr. Biden, because he’s Irish, he’s got Irish connections."

Zag: "He’ll definitely do it, he’ll definitely do it."

Of course, you have already met a President of the United States - Donald Trump. What are your memories of that meeting?

Zig: "It was a difficult meeting, wasn’t it, Zag? Because of the amount of red tape he had to go through to meet us. He wasn’t famous then. We were more famous than he was so yeah, he was OK."

Zag: "He was actually OK. The more orange he got, the worse he got."  

Do you have a script?

Zag: "Noooo."

Zig: "It will be ad lib. Maybe a list of what’s coming next - `we have a competition in the next bit and then Dustin is selling Perspex’ or whatever. We’ll say hello to people, do birthday call-outs, show pictures but other than that it could go any way."

Dustin: a bad word for everyone

And each show is an hour long?

Zag: "Dustin said he wasn’t coming back unless it was an hour long. He says he has lots of things he wants to get off his chest and he says he wants lots of time to be able to say it all. You know what Dustin’s like. He always has a bad word for everyone."

Zig: "He’s also got a job lot of Perspex to offload and now that we’re in lockdown 2 it’s probably the right time."

As aliens who have been observing this planet for 33 years and making us laugh at the same time, do you think we’ve been handling lockdown well? Is it really zero craic out there?

Zig: "I think the people in Ireland are dealing with it very well I have to say. People give out about it, but everyone is saying you know what? Fair enough. It’s for the best. As soon as we get this done, we get through it."

Zag: "I think people are pretty cool about it and that’s what The Den is for - we’re on for an hour, it’s a Covid-free zone and it’s gonna be just fun so hopefully we can help people through the lockdown."

Den and now

Will things like The Rotten Apple Club and Captain Joke be coming back?

Zag: "Yes, yes and yes."

Zig: "There are a couple of old things that will be given a new look."

Since you were last on The Den back in the early nineties, Ray has lost his hair, Dustin hasn’t mellowed, and you guys are the Cliff Richard of interplanetary celebrity - you haven’t aged a day. What’s your secret?

Zig: "We only have a birthday every four years. That’s the key. Leap years. We’re only about 12 years old now."

The Den, Sundays at 6.30pm on RTÉ One