A 'Late Late Show' quiz about the colour of a wife's honeymoon nightie proves controversial.
‘The Bishop and the Nightie’ was a much talked-about controversy arising from a light-hearted quiz on ‘The Late Late Show’. Here is the audio from the night. The video itself has not survived.
Host Gay Byrne picked a married couple from the audience, Richard and Eileen Fox from Terenure in Dublin, and asked each of them a series of questions while the other was out of earshot. One of the questions related to the colour of Eileen’s nightie on honeymoon. Richard said it was transparent, while Eileen said she wasn’t wearing any.
The item drew condemnation from Thomas Ryan, Bishop of Clonfert in Galway, who denounced ‘The Late Late Show’ from the pulpit and said he was disgusted by the disgraceful performance. Byrne later issued a statement saying it had not been the show’s intention to embarrass viewers. He pointed out that it was a late-night show designed for adult viewing.
Title: |
Honeymoon Nightie Quiz |
Clip Duration: |
00:04:29 |
Material Type: |
Audio |
Clip Title: |
The Bishop and the Nightie |
Series Title: |
The Late Late Show |
Information: |
'The Late Late Show' was intended to be a summer "filler" but proved so successful with the public that it became part of the regular schedule. The idea for the programme came from the show's producer, Tom McGrath, who wanted to present an Irish version of the American talk show 'The Tonight Show'.
Gay Byrne was to be the show's presenter and would remain so for the next 37 years. Tom McGrath's original idea was that the show would be informal and have the feel of people dropping in for a chat.
'The Late Late Show' became an important forum for the airing and debating of many issues in a changing Irish society.
The first programme of 'The Late Late Show' was broadcast at 11.20 pm, 6 July 1962. At the time, it was unusual to have a live talk and entertainment show on so late in the day's viewing. On that first show, the guests were Count Cyril McCormack, Ken Gray, George Desmond Hodnett and Harry Thuillier. McGrath would go on to pioneer many other successful variety shows on Irish television. Pat Kenny replaced Gay Byrne as presenter in 1999 and remained in that position for 10 years. The programme is still running today and is presented by Ryan Tubridy. The accompanying image shows Gay Byrne on 'The Late Late Show' set in 1968. The photographer was Des Gaffney.© RTÉ Archives 2290/033 |
Local Keywords: |
Gay Byrne, Broadcasting, RTÉ, The Late Late Show, The bishop and the nightie, Richard Fox, Eileen Fox, Bishop of Clonfert, Thomas Ryan |
Coverage: |
Ireland |
Topic: |
The Media |
Contributor(s): |
Gay Byrne (Presenter) |
Publisher: |
RTÉ |
First Broadcast Channel: |
Telefís Éireann |
Broadcast Date: |
01/02/1966 |
Production Year: |
1966 |
Country of Production: |
Ireland |
Original Identifier: |
12D00834 |
IPR Restrictions: |
Rights Reserved - Free Access |
Rights, Terms and Conditions: |
Copyright RTÉ. This material may not be replicated in any form or manner without the prior express permission of RTÉ. Any form of reproduction in print, television, video, multimedia, web site or other electronic media or any form of dissemination for commercial or non-commercial use must be licensed by the RTÉ Archives.
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Item Type: |
part/extract |
Sound: |
Mono |
Language: |
English (eng) |
