Former boyband star-turned-actor and entertainer Keith Duffy explores our fast-changing relationship with our teeth in Keith's Teeth: A Dental Odyssey.
From dentures as wedding presents to dazzling veneers, Keith also examines the reasons behind the boom in dental tourism in the authored documentary airing RTÉ One and RTÉ Player on Wednesday September 27th at 9:35pm.
During the zenith of his boyband fame in the ‘90s, Keith Duffy sported an imperfect smile, unlike the polished grins of today's pop stars. Nevertheless, it didn’t deter his career.
The early 21st Century ushered in a revolution in the way we perceive our dental health - cosmetic dental clinics began offering impeccable Hollywood smile packages and the Celtic Tiger years gave some the financial means to achieve them.
For a lot of people, the cost of cosmetic dentistry in Ireland is beyond their budget, so consequently the concept of packaged dental holidays has gained immense popularity, with Turkey emerging as the favoured destination for Ireland's dental tourists.
Speaking on the documentary Keith Duffy said:
"It was a real eye opener and educational experience working on this programme. The history of dentistry in Ireland is both shocking and scary. We’ve gone from a nation that neglected our teeth, to a nation of cosmetic dentistry addicts in barely two generations.”
Keith's Teeth: A Dental Odyssey blends observational documentary with social history. He uncovers stories from Ireland's dental past that are sometimes shockingly tragic. He also meets Irish individuals who travel to Turkey in the hope of reversing years of dental neglect through enticingly affordable cosmetic dentistry packages.
Join Keith Duffy on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player at 9:35pm on Wednesday 27th of September as he navigates the past and present of Ireland's dental landscape, uncovering the hidden stories and raising questions about the consequences of our pursuit of the perfect smile.