Patrick Kielty on Late Late Show: ‘Whoever gets that gig will be really, really lucky’

TV presenter Patrick Kielty, currently bookies’ favourite to become the next Late Late Show presenter, has said the programme is “one of the greatest TV shows on the planet” and that “whoever gets that gig will be really, really lucky”.

Speaking in advance of the Irish Film and Television Academy Awards, Kielty said people needed to remember that the next presenter would have big shoes to fill in replacing Ryan Tubridy.

“I have done a chatshow before. I have done a live show before,” he said alongside his presenter wife Cat Deeley. “We both have done live TV. It is hard.”

Deeley said Tubridy presents the show “beautifully, effortlessly beautifully, like a swan, he glides on the top of the surface, paddling underneath. So they are very big shoes to fill”.

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Asked if the couple would consider moving to Ireland, Deeley replied: “Let’s see if you (Kielty) even get it first of all, shall we? Shall we talk about it then?”

Earlier Claire Byrne said she had not had any “meaningful discussions” with RTÉ about succeeding Tubridy as the presenter of show.

In a statement posted on social media on Sunday, Byrne denied that the job was offered to her by the national broadcaster after the Business Post reported that a number of concessions were made by RTÉ in an attempt to make the job more appealing.

Byrne was, according to the article, seen as the “only viable candidate” by senior figures at RTÉ, who were said to have offered to reduce the number of shows broadcast and to shorten each episode to 90 minutes in an attempt to convince her to take on the job.

The current affairs presenter responded by reaffirming her decision to take her name out of the running after “a long period of deliberation about what it would mean for my work and personal life”.

‘Better things’

In the caption of the social media post, Byrne said: “We all have better things to be getting on with now so that’s the last anyone will hear from me about it!”

The host of RTÉ Radio‘s Today programme had been one of the favourites for the Friday night job, but on Thursday said: “I have a young family, a busy home life and a full-time radio job that I love, and right now, that is enough for me.”

She said the show “should be presented by someone who can give it the time and dedication that it deserves”.

A spokeswoman for RTÉ said a new Late Late Show presenter will “in due course” be revealed. “I can confirm that Claire Byrne was never offered the Late Late Show role and also confirm the story is incorrect,” the spokeswoman said.

The future of RTÉs flagship TV show has been subject to speculation since Tubridy announced in March that he would be stepping down as presenter at the end of this month. Sarah McInerney and Miriam O’Callaghan have also ruled themselves out as successors to Tubridy.