Cat Deeley sent her husband Patrick Kielty a lucky shamrock ahead of his debut as the new host of The Late Late Show.
Well this has set us right off 😭@catdeeley @PatricKielty #LateLate pic.twitter.com/1dqGz0SuRk
— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) September 15, 2023
In a video message, she said that she and the couple's two boys wanted to wish him the best as he takes on the hot seat on the long-running chat show.
Earlier in the day, Kielty said his main aim ahead of tonight's show is to enjoy it and "take it all in".
Speaking on the brand new Late Late Show set, the 52-year-old comedian who hails from Co Down, revealed that his main emotion ahead of his RTÉ One chat show hosting debut was, "excitement".
"It sort of feels that the anticipation - people talking and all that stuff - that's in the past.
"I can see the pitch - it’s time to get the boots on and time to make the show."
While remaining tightlipped on tonight's guest line-up, Kielty was questioned over the actors' strike in Hollywood and how it will affect who joins him live in studio.
However, he was breezy about the impact it has had on luring A-list guests to Dublin. He said: "I think the brilliant thing about The Late Late Show is that it's never really relied on sort of that huge stable every week.
"For us, I think it's very different. I think that The Late Late Show covers entertainment, it also covers sport, lifestyle and lots of different things.
"So, I can see how that would have affected a show like Graham [The Graham Norton Show] a lot more.
"For us, we're really chuffed with who we have for Friday and the strike kind of hasn't affected that, which is pretty good news."
Speaking about what kind of tone he wants to set as he kicks off a new season of the longest-running live chat show in the world, Kielty said he wants it "to be a little bit loose" and not to come across as "too polished."
He added: "You know, I think it's kind of about having fun. If things are fun and things go wrong, I think that's kind of hopefully the tone of the show… I think there'll be ebbs and flows and hopefully something in there for everybody."
When asked how he'd like viewers to react in emoji form, Kielty laughed and said: "I'd hope there's maybe going to be a few 'laugh out louds'; there might be one of those with the monkey [gestures the emoji where the monkey is covering his eyes], and hopefully at the end of it, people will be smiling."
Will his wife Cat Deeley and the couple’s two young sons will be supporting Patrick from the studio wings tonight?
"We're still only a couple of weeks into the school routine, so to pull them out of school on a Friday to get them over here in time for the show, I'm not sure we're going to do that," Kielty said.
"But I would say there may be a show sometime before Christmas that I might have to dress up slightly differently, that the request may come in for a trip - so let's see!" he laughed. He also added that his family will watch tonight's show on the RTÉ Player.
Kilety's family live in London, and when asked about the impact that spending several days a week in Dublin will have on his family life, he said: "Weirdly [it feels] that this show is probably the most routine that we're going to have as a family.
"I think the thing with our lives is that there's always been moving parts, you know - neither of us have had a nine-to-five job.
"There's always been stuff where Cat's gone and done something, or I've gone and done something - so it feels, weirdly, that this show is probably the most routine that we're going to have as a family."
He continued: "And what's nice is that I still get to do a couple of school runs at the start of the week and, coming from Co Down and still having a house there, I get to see the other part of the family and get to be here.
"So, it's not as much of an upheaval as maybe you think it [might be]".
Kielty also confirmed that former host Ryan Tubridy had been in touch. He said: "I got a little message from Ryan wishing me good luck, which I thought was very nice."
When pressed for further details, he refused to elaborate, saying: "Come on now. I've thrown you a good bone there!"
Referencing another previous presenter - the late Gay Byrne - Kielty says he admired Byrne’s at-home audience interaction during his many decades at the helm of the show.
"Growing up… watching Gay do his stuff, I think the brilliant thing that he used to do was he talked to the audience as much as [possible], you know, down the camera.
"It was like coming into the parlour, and I think for me, that is what this show is. There'll be different things... eclectic bits and pieces.
"[But] the main lesson that I have learned over the years from the show is we treat everybody the same. You treat everybody the same - that's what it does best and that's why it has stood the test of time.
"The one thing that I promised myself right the way through this - this week more than ever - is if you're not here to actually enjoy every little bit of this week, then what's the point in doing the job?
"So will there be a few butterflies? There will be, but ultimately, you know, I’m going to try to take it all in and suck every last brilliant moment out of it."
The Late Late Show is on RTÉ One and RTÉ Player at 9.35pm tonight.
Audrey Donohue
