Opinion: the show remains a specifically Irish cultural achievement and the new host must maintain its place in our social history
Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown of the next Late Late Show presenter and the weight of Ireland's social history will lie heavy on those shoulders. The Late Late Show came on air six months after the launch of Irish television in 1962. This was a time of exciting new icons
Ireland was changing fast. This was the time of JFK's visit to Ireland. In 1961, we applied for membership of what is now the EU. There was Whitaker’s programme for economic development and the notion of free secondary education was first initiated. Young people were on the move, escaping from small rural villages to the more urban attractions of Ireland’s cities.
Into this vibrant melting pot, came the Late Late Show, which gradually and almost imperceptivity became a mediator and facilitator of social change in Ireland. Gay Byrne himself has stated he was in the right place at the right time when the Late Late first started. Former host Pat Kenny and current host (for the next month) Ryan Tubridy both share a trade secret; it is very difficult to compete with a broadcasting legend like Byrne. Soon, the new host will realise just how burdensome that Late Late Show crown can be.
Through the mediating presence of its first host, the show challenged established viewpoints and offered an outlet for the changing impulses of Irish society. Byrne’s personality was the fulcrum around which the entire programme revolved. Former Irish Times journalist, Ken Gray, who was a guest on the very first Late Late Show, referred to Byrne in the 1960s as "the great window-opener" who ensured the show’s success by running into trouble with the establishment.
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From RTÉ Archives, extract from a 1965 episode of The Late Late Show
One example of this occured in 1966 with a controversy which began as a result of unfounded reports that Byrne intended to bring on a "bunny girl" from the Playboy Club in London. Playboy executive, Victor Lownes further fuelled controversy by issuing a press release stating that the purpose of his visit was to recruit Irish girls for Playboy clubs in England!
This was followed some weeks later by what the Irish Times termed the bishop and the nightie incident. There was in fact, no nightie, as a Mrs Fox revealed, when asked what she wore on her wedding night. At the time, a remark such as this on cross- channel TV would have been perceived at most as tacky or tasteless. At home, the Catholic Standard and the Loughrea Town Commissioners called the Late Late Show "a dirty programme which should be abolished altogether" and, with that comment, the show became unmissable.
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From RTÉ Archives, audio of the infamous bishop and the nightie quiz on The Late Late Show in 1966
In 1967, the Late Late Show was instrumental in highlighting that the church’s ban on Catholics attending Trinity was outmoded. In the early 1970s, the show caught issues such as Northern Ireland and contraception just as they were breaking. A cursory review of the show’s content from the 1960s to the 1980s will show that the Late Late Show reflected Ireland’s readiness for the sexual and cultural diversity which existed within and outside its shores.
It provided a forum in which all corners of Irish society were excavated and examined. Moreover, the show firmly asserted its opposition to sectarian violence by highlighting horrific killings from Bloody Sunday in 1972 right through to the slaughter in Enniskillen in 1987. Chameleon-like, the Late Late Show also showcased much of Ireland’s musical talent, in particular throughout the 1980s: personalities and performers such as Sinead O'Connor, Bob Geldof and U2 were all introduced for the first time to Irish audiences.
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From RTÉ Archives, Sinead O'Connor performs "Nothing Compares to You" on the Late Late Show in 1990
Maintaining the remit of the Late Late Show as a social and cultural historian will be an unenviable task for the new host. During its formative years, the show was under Byrne’s control, and it was this ad-hoc programming policy which was partly responsible for its ground-breaking nature. Now, it is difficult to imagine how a talk show host could do what Byrne did and operate outside of the programme sponsor and the corporation it represents.
For Byrne, timing was all. He knew instinctively, back in 1962 at just 26 years of age, that he could shape and mould his role as Late Late Show host. By 1999, he was ageing: the show's audience had changed and complaints regarding the transparency of his views, in particular, his veneration of presidential candidate Brian Lenihan and the so-called pillarisation of Annie Murphy, were emerging. It was time to go.
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From RTÉ Archives, Gay Byrne's 1993 Late Late Show interview with Annie Murphy about her affair with Bishop Eamonn Casey
Nonetheless, from Byrne to Tubridy, the Late Late Show remains a specifically Irish cultural achievement. Its new host must ensure it continues to maintain its place in Ireland’s social history. Although it can no longer be expected to revolutionize Irish culture, the show must continue to provide a forum for public debate. Ireland’s vulnerability to the Anglo-American culture industry has made the resilience of a home-produced programme like the Late Late Show all the more remarkable and this must be cherished.
The next presenter should be seen as a custodian of a uniquely Irish cultural phenomenon that has provided social historians with a valuable insight into the morals and mores of Irish society since the show’s inception in 1962. Post-pandemic Ireland has changed how we engage with terrestrial television. The Late Late Show and its new presenter will have the daunting task of keeping the show relevant in a world of Instagram influencers and online onlookers. It will be almost impossible to ever claim again that 'it started on the Late Late Show.'
The views expressed here are those of the author and do not represent or reflect the views of RTÉ
