WATCH: Catriona Gray shares message of hope for troubled times

MANILA, Philippines — Taal Volcano eruption, Australia bushfires, USA versus Iran… Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray has a message for everyone amid everything that is happening in the Philippines and the world today.

During a recent interview with Philstar.com for her birthday celebration in “It’s Showtime,” Catriona said that while she cannot say if the end times are near, “I always believe in the power of prayer and I always believe that there’s always hope.”

“It’s not too late for us to take constructive actions in repairing our broken world,” added the singer-model, who marked her 26th birthday last January 6.

Gray is kickstarting the new chapter of her life by bringing her signature charm to noontime TV in ABS-CBN’s “It’s Showtime,” serving as one of the special hosts of its new segment “Mini Ms. U.”

“Mini Ms. U” is a pageant for little girls who want to unleash their inner beauty queen and showcase their wit, talent and passion for their chosen causes.

“They’re really cute. And just to see them really performing so well on stage and having such high confidence at that age — it’s really amazing to see,” said Catriona, who is also taking lessons to improve her Tagalog.

Each day, three charming young beauty queens will compete to become the daily winner, who will then have a shot at pursuing her advocacy or getting her wish come true in the weekly finals. The grand winner of the competition will have a chance at becoming ABS-CBN’s next child superstar.

“It’s Showtime” also brings good fortune to its madlang people with the new segment “Piling Lucky.” Every day, the show opens its doors to fans who line up at the ABS-CBN Audience Entrance, from which the Lucky 100 will be drawn. From the Lucky 100, the Lucky 20 players will be brought to the studio to carry out challenges using their chosen lucky items in successive rounds.

In the end, only one out of the 20 players will remain to play the ultimate game of luck and win the jackpot prize of P50,000. If no one wins the prize, it will be added to the accumulated jackpot prize money the next day.

Catriona is also co-hosting “Tawag ng Tanghalan,” which kicked off its fourth year on air as it continues to scour the country and other parts of the world to look for the singing superstar who will follow in the footsteps of grand winners Noven Belleza, Janine Berdin and Elaine Duran.

The competition boosts the stakes for all contenders in its fourth year, which will place the daily winner or defending champion under the threat of the gong in the daily faceoff round. Apart from the “punong hurado,” other judges can also “gong” a contender if four of them press their buzzers during the performance – a new feature called “power of four.”

Moreover, four industry legends will also be introduced as new members of its esteemed panel of “hurados” soon.

Watch out for more surprises in “Mini Ms. U,” “Piling Lucky,” and the fourth year of “Tawag ng Tanghalan” in “It’s Showtime,” which airs from Mondays to Saturdays on ABS-CBN and ABS-CBN HD (Sky Cable channel 167). — Video by Kat Leandicho