The Late Late Show is a long-running chat show and officially the flagship television programme of Irish broadcasting company Radio Telefís Éireann (RTÉ). The show, hosted by Pat Kenny, is broadcast live for two hours in front of a studio audience at 9:30PM on Friday nights between September and May. It is broadcast from Studio 4 in RTÉ's headquarters, a studio specifically adapted in 1995 to cater for this flagship production, and Kenny Live. The show was previously broadcast on Saturday nights. At present it is sponsored by Halifax.
The Late Late Show was first broadcast on Friday, 6 July 1962 at 11:20PM. Since then, its format has remained largely the same, with music, chat, and audience involvement in debates on topical issues. The show's rapid rise to popularity led it to top the ratings consistently on RTÉ for forty years. Some sociologists have credited it with influencing Irish attitudes towards many issues, and directing social change in Ireland to construct current Irish societal norms.
Few of the 1960s editions of the Late Late Show exist, as it was prohibitively expensive to use tape to record shows in those days. Also, people often did not realise the value in archiving them.
Craig Kilborn (born August 24, 1962) is an American comedian and former talk show host. He was the original host of The Daily Show, a former anchor on ESPN's SportsCenter, and Tom Snyder's successor on CBS's The Late Late Show.
