Patrick Kielty will host The Late Late Show for the first time tonight with the Co Down comedian saying that taking the helm of Ireland's longest-running chat show is a "massive deal" for him and a responsibility that he does not take lightly.
The set, style and guest list for the new season of the programme have been kept under wraps and will be revealed when the show airs at 9.35pm on RTÉ One but the new host says there will be some changes to the programme.
"This for me is, it's a massive, massive deal. Growing up in Co Down and at the time, what people were going through, this was an escape. This was a window to normal life.
"You know, the responsibility of that, I do not take lightly. To walk out and to be able to host a show that you once watched with your family as a kid. I mean, that's a real big deal.
"I think that when you take it over, you're minding it, you're the custodian of it. So obviously, there's going to be stuff there, which people will recognise and should.
"I think my job is to bring my personality to some of those things which are there already and maybe do the odd wee thing which is different, and keep the fingers crossed the people like it."
The Late Late Show is 61 years old and Mr Kielty is the fifth main presenter of the programme, which is widely regarded as a national institution.
However, he takes over the helm at a time of unprecedented turmoil in RTÉ with its previous host parting company with the broadcaster following controversy over undeclared payments.
So has Patrick Kielty been able to turn to any of his predecessors for advice?
"I got a little message earlier in the week from Ryan [Tubridy]. I haven't managed to speak to Pat [Kenny]. I've been trying to keep myself in a bit of a bubble in terms of talking to previous hosts just because when you're doing your own show, I think you kind of have to do your thing.
"After you get the first show out of the way, then you can have a chat with other people that have done the show as well and you can compare those notes after. I think it's about trying to make my show first and then see how it goes."
But how has taking on RTÉ's most high-profile presenting job in the midst of the broadcaster's greatest crisis been?
"I've dealt with it pretty much as I deal with most things in my life, whenever you get to my age, which is, you know, the stuff you can control, the stuff you can't. There's stuff that your business and there's stuff that isn't.
"Right the way through all of this my focus was, 'what is my business'? And it's hosting this show, what can I change, how the show is going to be?
"And what's lovely is kind of having most of that now in the rear-view mirror. And right in front of me now is the gig and the show. And so that's that's where I'm looking and looking forward to."
Patrick's mother will watch the show from her home in Dundrum, Co Down, and he said his brothers may travel to Dublin to be in the audience.
His sons Milo and James will likely be in bed by the time his first broadcast begins but he said his wife Cat Deely, who has 25 years of television presenting experience, will be watching from their home in London and the advice she regularly gives him will be ringing in his ears.
"Myself and my wife, whenever we leave the house to go to do a gig, the last thing we say to each other is 'See ya! Don't be s**t!'"
The couple decided to keep the family in London after moving there in recent years from Los Angeles.
But Mr Kielty says he does not believe living abroad while hosting a show famous for reflecting Irish life and current affairs will be a disadvantage
"I don't think so. I mean, I think the show speaks for itself. I think that if you look at so many Irish people who are around the world.
"A few weeks ago I was doing this thing with the London Irish Centre and that community, there's huge parishes and huge communities of Irish people that feel as Irish as people who are living on the island.
"I'm very lucky that I still have a house in County Down, I come back here, even before I was doing this show, a lot. So I don't think so. But you know, the audiences will ultimately decide."
However, when the 51 year old was asked by one journalist about what new and up-and-coming Irish musicians he was looking forward to having on the programme, he seemed to struggle to answer the question.
"To be honest with you, it's kind of funny you're asking me about, am I up to date with Irish music? I mean, I kinda think we're all up to date with our music. Irish music is big here and it's big all around the world.
"I think one of the things that we're excited about is having as many homegrown names on the show as big international stars. So watch this space. I don't think we're giving guests away. And it feels like I'm not answering it. And I'm not answering it. But I kind of want to answer it. There's lots of nice treats that I'm really happy with and I hope everybody else is."
Fielding questions from a room full of journalists, Patrick Kielty also said he will continue to host his BBC radio show live from Belfast on Saturday mornings.
He also said he does not feel the US writers' strike will impact on the line up of guests for the show, that he is excited about the prospect of hosting the Late Late Toy Show, and that he still has to clarify who he will ask to "Roll it there" with Colette - the well-known custodian of this role - long retired.
There has been lots going on behind the scenes in RTÉ in recent months but the national broadcaster will hope that a new era of The Late Late Show will go some way to helping put the public's focus back on its output.
For his part, he hopes that he will benefit from the legacy the show has already created and make his own mark on the next chapter of its history.
"The brilliant thing is that the people that make this show, the people that work in this building, are better at live TV. This is the only live talk show in the world. So you've got to trust those people and the people around you who are the best in the business.
"What you have to do is just bring whatever experience you have and be collaborative and try to add to that. I think the tone is hopefully gonna be a little bit loose.
"I think as someone who's done live stand up and enjoys doing live TV, I think the idea of trying to make the thing be too polished, you know, I think it's kind of about having fun.
"If things are fun and things go wrong, I think that's hopefully the tone of the show. The pace of the show, I think there'll be ebbs and flows and hopefully something in there for everybody," added Mr Kielty.
