Patrick Kielty to stay on as Late Late host

Patrick Kielty will continue to present The Late Late Show until 2028 after RTÉ extended his contract.

The new three-year deal allows for up to 30 shows per season.

The Co Down man became the fourth presenter of the show in 2023 and will return for its 66th season from September.

In a statement through the station, Kielty said: “Hosting The Late Late Show is one of the greatest gigs in the world and the past three years have been a joy and a privilege.

“The heart of the show will always be our amazing audience and I can’t wait to be part of their Friday nights again from this September.”

RTÉ said the 2025/2026 season had an average of 385,000 viewers per episode, with a 38.2% share and more than 1.46 million streams on its streaming player, an increase on the previous year.

Steve Carson, RTÉ’s director of video, said; “Patrick has made the Late Late truly his own and the figures, not least the incredible engagement on social media, demonstrate his star power and easy connection with audiences young and old.”

RTÉ declined to say what Kielty would be paid under the terms of the new contract, instead stating the salary would be published in its annual report.

The station and host had revealed his pay during the first contract was 250,000 euro per year.

However, he was paid an additional 23,980 euro across 2024 and 2025 for presenting additional programmes beyond his standard contract.

Kielty was paid a total of 266,323 euro in 2025 and 257,657 euro in 2024.

The national broadcaster said this was because it “required” Kielty to present “some additional programmes beyond his standard contract”.

Director-general Kevin Bakhurst said the extra payments were for “exceptional” episodes such as a Christmas special.

Kielty announced his separation from British TV presenter Cat Deeley, who hosts This Morning on ITV, last year.