The Late Late Show (Ireland)
From The TV IV
The Late Late Show is the world's oldest and longest running chat show. It was first broadcast by RTÉ on Friday, July 6, 1962 at 11:20pm. It is Ireland's most popular and prestigious television show. It is renowned for covering many topics which would be considered controversial and were previously undiscussed on Irish television. Pat Kenny became the second long term host of The Late Late Show in September 1999, taking over from Gay Byrne. Gay was the programme's first presenter in 1962, and apart from one season when Frank Hall presented the show while Gay worked with the BBC he had a continuous run of almost 37 years.
[edit] Hosts
To date, The Late Late Show has had three hosts in total: Gay Byrne, Frank Hall (one season), and Pat Kenny.
| Host | From | To |
|---|---|---|
| Gay Byrne | July 6, 1962 | May 21, 1999 |
| Frank Hall | Took over from Byrne for one season in the late 1960s | |
| Pat Kenny | September 3, 1999 | present |
[edit] Notes
It is broadcast live for two hours in front of a studio audience at 9:30pm on Friday nights between September and May from Studio 4 in RTÉ's Montrose headquarters.
Among the guests who have appeared on the show are; Mother Teresa, George Best, Cliff Richard, Rod Stewart, Richard Branson, Elton John, Jerry Springer, Colin Farrell, Peter Sellers and Peter O'Toole.
Among the artists who have made their first television appearance on The Late Late Show are: Sinead O'Connor, the Boomtown Rats and Boyzone.
