RTÉ PRESENTER Pat Kenny is to step down as host of The Late Late Show, after 10 years at the helm.
Mr Kenny will leave his position at the end of this season to take up the role as presenter of a new current affairs programme.
The new programme, scheduled to be broadcast on Monday nights from next autumn replacing Questions and Answers, will be a mix of political satire, analysis and debate, according to the national broadcaster.
In a statement, RTÉ said Mr Kenny’s experience and expertise made him a natural fit for the new show.
Cathal Goan, director-general of RTÉ, said "in discussing his future at RTÉ it was clear that Pat did not see himself continuing with The Late Late Showfor another five years".
Mr Goan said Mr Kenny would be a hard act to follow on The Late Late Show. "Pat took on the daunting job of replacing someone who had hosted the show for 37 years . . . he succeeded in making the programme his own and it has been consistently rated as RTÉ's best performing show, week in week out."
Announcing his decision, Mr Kenny said "the time is right for a change after 10 years on The Late Late Showand more than 20 years in RTÉ television's light entertainment department".
"Of course I will miss The Late Late Show, but I won't miss the late late Friday nights running into the early hours of Saturday morning," he added.
Speculation has already begun as to who will replace Mr Kenny, with Ryan Tubridy and Miriam O’Callaghan among the leading candidates.
A spokesman for RTÉ refused to comment on the issue, saying it had not even considered who would replace Mr Kenny but that the show would continue.