It was today announced that Patrick Kielty will be taking the reigns of The Late Late Show.
The comedian will be at the helm of RTÉ’s flagship programme from September for its 61st season.
Patrick will become the fourth presenter to host the show, following in the footsteps of Gay Byrne, Pat Kenny and most recently Ryan Tubridy.
Find out everything we know about the man who will soon be gracing our TV screens every Friday night:
Patrick is a native of Co. Down, having grown up in the village of Dundrum.
He began his stand-up comedy career as host of Northern Ireland’s first comedy club The Empire Laughs Back in Belfast.
The following year, he was a finalist in a National Comedy Search organised by none other than RTÉ’s The Late Late Show.
Patrick was awarded Best Newcomer at the 1996 Royal Television Society Awards for presenting BBC Northern Ireland’s PK Tonight.
The following year, Patrick established Belfast-based TV company Green Inc with TV director Stephen Stewart.
The 52-year-old’s career then grew immensely across TV, radio and the stage.
In 2003, he hosted the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics in Croke Park – which broadcast to a global audience of 800 million.
Three years later, he hosted a segment on ITV’s coverage of The Prince’s Trust 30th Birthday LIVE.
Patrick has guested on BBC’s Live at the Apollo, presented Sport Relief, co-hosted episodes of This Morning, and guest hosted episode of The One Show.
In 2018, the 52-year-old presented a documentary, titled My Dad, the Peace Deal and Me, which explored the state of Northern Ireland two decades on from the Good Friday Agreement, and the effect his father’s murder had on him.
In 2021, he took part in RTÉ’s All the Walks of Life where he spoke about his childhood and values.
He later starred in the 2022 film Ballywalter, which was nominated for an award at the 2023 IFTA Awards.
Patrick and his wife Cat Deeley, who is a model and TV presenter, tied the knot during a private ceremony in Rome in September 2012.
The couple share two sons – Milo, 7, and James, 4.
Patrick will take the reigns of The Late Late Show this September for its 61st season.
