Major public praise for Patrick Kielty following his Late Late Show debut

“Patrick Kielty may just turn out to be an inspired choice”

Last night (September 15th), Patrick Kielty took over the reins of The Late Late Show as presenter for the first time.

The Co. Down native was welcomed on stage with a touching tribute the late Gay Byrne recorded in 1991, when Kielty was a guest on the show.

His opening monologue for his debut, which featured quips about former host Ryan Tubridy and the recent RTÉ payment scandal, has been met with praise and has firmly captured viewers attention.

After, he interviewed an array of famous Irish faces, with a bounty of applause for his interview with his final guest, Wrexham and Ireland star James McClean.

Many viewers took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to convey how impressed they were with the comedian’s first show.

“Overwhelming praise for Patrick Kielty on #LateLateShow. RTÉ won’t be used to praise. If he keeps up with not interrupting guests and has guests who aren’t just RTÉ cross promotion, talking about interesting things, the show might recover,” one wrote.

 

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“Loving #LateLateShow so far. I think Patrick Kielty is a much needed palate cleanser for RTE right now. He’s super,” one viewer declared.

“Patrick Kielty’s debut on the Late Late Show was just superb and rip-roaringly funny. 10/10,” one user posted.

 

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“Still reeling a bit from the new Late Late Show. Refreshing, fun, humourous, yet had just enough depth. Patrick Kielty may just turn out to be an inspired choice,” another wrote.

“RTE a) hiring Patrick Kielty and b) letting him be himself, might be the best decision they’ve made in years. Superb so far. I’d actually…watch this. #LateLateShow”

However, while Kielty was able to add a humorous touch to the talk show, it was the presenter’s interview with James McClean that won viewers over, proving he brought depth to the role. 

McClean bravely opened up about his autism diagnosis, with viewers hailing the footballer’s raw honesty as well as Kielty’s ability to interview and listen on such a topic.

“@PatricKielty one-on-one chat with James McClean suggests that Patrick has the emotional intelligence to elevate The Late Late Show to an unprecedented level,” one praised.

“Fantastic interview by Patrick Kielty with James McClean. Both came out of it very well. Kielty is a real sports fan, something you can’t fake. Good of McClean to talk about his autism the way he did,” another applauded.