BY Stephen Porzio

RTÉ have released the viewing figures for Kielty's first episode at the helm of the Late Late.

Patrick Kielty's debut last Friday night hosting the Late Late was a rapturous success, with the Northern Irish comedian managing to win over audiences - and the RTÉ Director General - with his enthusiasm, interviewing skills and sharp wit. Singled out for particular praise was his opening monologue where he delivered several jokes focused around the recent RTÉ secret payments scandal before turning his attention to his family history and how this influenced his life-long love of the programme. Now, RTÉ has revealed that Kielty's first episode at the helm of the talk show had an average audience of 830,000, with a peak audience of 934,000 tuning in. As well as this, the RTÉ Player has had 158,000 streams of the episode, making it the strongest ever Late Late opening on the streamer. "There was a 65% audience share among Adults aged 25-44 for the show. On social media, videos posted on Late Late Show accounts have amassed 7.6 million views since September 1st," the broadcaster said. Patrick Kielty's monologue Kielty’s guests for his opening night included comedian Tommy Tiernan, former President Mary McAleese, footballer James McClean and radio presenters The 2 Johnnies. There was also live music from Chasing Abbey. Posting on Instagram on Sunday, the comedian said he was overwhelmed by the response to his debut and told his followers that it was "an absolute privilege" to host the show. He wrote: "Overwhelmed by all your messages before, during and after my first Late Late Show. It was an absolute privilege to step onto that stage and it really felt that so many of you were carrying me. I can’t thank you enough." Kielty also paid tribute to his wife and fellow presenter Cat Deeley for her support ahead of his first episode.

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