PK@rte.ie (again). The All New (Patrick Kielty) Late Late Show Thread

The Late Late Show under Gay Byrne is what most remember as the good old days of this show …… despite that Gay's era had its poor shows too …… I only remember his later shows as was not even around for his earlier ones ….. let's see what I remember …..

Earliest memory is prob Annie Murphy …… this interview changed perspectives ….. and P Flynn a while later …… I remember good music guests ….. most of them are dead now ….. and actors like Peter Ustinov who were more interesting than what we have today …..

On the down side I do remember Gay had the same problems that ran into the Kenny and Tubridy eras ….. repeated guests and the birth of the 'boyband' culture …… Boyzone and Westlife did not begin with Kielty nor Tubridy nor even Kenny ….. but with Gaybo ….. and they were on constant !! ….. I remember people complaining about the over exposure we got from guests like Brendan O'Carroll and Tom O'Connor not to mention Maureen Potter …… but one person I cannot recall much about is actually Kielty ….. knew he was on but cannot remember a thing about him !! …..

So Gaybo's era had a lot of the same flaws ….. but there was no reality TV like today, no podcasters, no internet sensations …. the internet did not exist and was in its infancy during Gay's final years hosting ….. Gay's later type of show more or less continued with Kenny and Tubridy ….. with the discussion part being essential in the mix ….. the so called 'misery slot' was part of it too always and it divided audiences ….. and the mediums, psychics, quacks and so on were part and parcel from Gay to Tubridy …..

Kielty shortened the show and seemed to keep the bad bits like the airhead interviews …… and doubled down on inane guests like Joanne McNally and Garron Noone ….. the lack of discussion and the lack of seriousness have alienated many …. and the fact that the show tries to copy everything from poor US chatshows like Seth Meyers as well as the Graham Norton show all do not help ….. Gay Byrne had his own visions and the show worked more often than not ….. today it has an identity crisis …..

I remember there were panels on discussing issues …… ones I remember had different people every time ….. topics could range from abortion and divorce to Saddam Hussein …… then there'd be specific tributes like to the Dubliners ….. and special annual shows like the antiques one …..

I remember Gay's Late Late Shows of around 1996, 1997, 1998 and 1999 …… there was almost always something decent on it …… but there was a lot of repetitive fodder too ….. like Brendan O'Carroll, Tom O'Connor, Maureen Potter, boybands, etc, etc …… the seeds of the current format were sown around then …..

I remember the Kenny years as being full of boybands …… but also of politicians moreso than in Gaybo's time ….. Kenny changed the theme music but largely kept Gay's 1990s style ….. it was the era of Westlife ….. they seemed to be on every minute !! ….. regulars like Padraig Harrington and Dermot Bannon began to appear more in this time …..

Tubridy's era changed the theme back to Gay's one ….. and kept most of the rest of Kenny's format ….. the established guests like Bannon and Bill Cullen dominated ….. boybands split but their solo members appeared ….. and the internet sensations began to become dominant ….. serious discussion, airheadism and misery coexisted ….. it was an era of Christy Dignam, Vicky Phelan, Charlie Bird, Laura Brennan telling stories of terminal illness after Westlifers and Boyzoners being on the couch beforehand !!! ….

Kielty then got rid of the 'misery slot' but did not get rid of the airheads ….. discussion was not included and the show became v different to what Byrne, Kenny and Tubridy did ….. and not for the best ….. like his 3 predecessors Kielty had favourites and we are sick of seeing Garron Noone and Joanne McNally on …… the quality of guest has gone down and there is a lot less music on Kielty's show ….. anything controversial is mostly discouraged …. and guests seem to be for the most part 'safe' …..

Cringeworthy TV indeed, I do not know who was worse, the 3 remaining Westlife members or Kielty. Did you see the bit where Kielty went to a pregnant woman in the audience and asked her when is it due. She said July. Kielty actually said if its a boy you can call it after Kian and if its a girl you can call it Shane.

Oh my f..….g God.

So embarassing.

Gay Bryne must be rolling in his grave.

The simple problem is the likes of Westlife are on too often ….. they are around now the best part of 30 years …… and year in year out on this show no matter who was the host ….. apparently 13/11/1998 was their first appearance …..

The more they are on the more it becomes like the law of diminishing returns ….. in the way that the more they are on the less they have to offer ….. the less they can add to things as everything about them has been said umpteen times …..

Boyzone are even longer around than Westlife ….. you'd have to go all the way back to 1993 ….. that video you posted was the start of the modern Late Late Show imv ….. but there was still back then plenty older national and international music guests on his show to compensate …..

The bottom line is the negative aspects of the Late Late Show are around a lot longer than we care to admit ….. but it is more pronounced today because it has become more emphasised with each host …… it is like a kettle heating up …… Boyzone were constantly on Gaybo's later shows I recall ….. joined by Westlife in Gay's final season …… they became the mainstay of the Kenny years and continued under Tubridy and Kielty …..

The show has martyred us with guests on way too often as long as I can remember …… Maureen Potter, Tom O'Connor, Brendan O'Carroll aka Agnes Brown, Boyzone, Westlife, Bill Cullen, Dermot Bannon, Padraig Harrington, Joanne McNally, Garron Noone ….. take your pick ….. the quality/talent/etc of these guests vary significantly but all have been on way too often …… I cannot remember before the 1990s but I am sure the show always had the 'guest on too often' problem ….. Potter was most certainly a mainstay from the very start I'd imagine ?? ..

I dont get the appeal myself but Joanne McNally is popular... she regularly fills major venues. BBC putting her on Celebrity Traitors.

I have often wondered this, that Graham Norton should have on his panel some random cancer or abuse survivor, just to see how the UK would react.

Can we just have more country music pleeeeease!😁

I had said that in my review of that week, that he hadn't been on since Tubs, he'd been on twice some seasons, but I could be wrong about that, he certainly was on at least once a year when Tubs was hosting from when he was doing Room To Improve etc.

Can't see him as a presenter of TLLS.

Re: The Misery Slot AFAIR Kenny took that over from Kenny live, at the end of his show he'd have a new stage set up where the final misery guest would talk to him and the lights would be turned down, could be wrong that he brought that idea of a separate stage into his first season on TLLS.

A busy week indeed for the press releases for Noel and team over at NKM.

Glenroe and Dramas is largely due to royalties cheaper for RTÉ to repeat an import such as Murder, She Wrote than Glenroe. During Covid you saw them change that policy some what and some older dramas have ended up on the play. Remember RTÉ had to negotiate for Fair City to appear on the +1 channel and then on the player, while EastEnders was on both from the beginning.

TLLS afaik wasn't retained all that often, I wouldn't say that RTÉ have any of Nighthawks you might be lucky if they have the full series of DFTG.

Don't Feed the Gondolas (a panel show with Sean Moncreiff).

@iffandonlyif this is correct, it seems that residuals for Irish actors for re-broadcast on RTÉ are quite lucrative for them, or more expensive than repeating a US or UK drama, actors in those drama get roalties when repeated / shown on streamers.

Yes and Irish TV writers would also be able to look at past Irish Drama not just to UK and US productions. (And Australian )

I wonder how much more expensive it actually is?