Four Late Late Show talking points, from D'Unbelievables to an Irish Gladiator
Patrick Kielty, the host of The Late Late Show.
A group who rowed across the Atlantic Ocean from Spain to Antigua in memory of one man’s late daughter were in the studio to speak about the experience.
John O’Driscoll’s daughter Saoirse passed away aged 13 due to congenital heart disease and he committed to the feat in her memory — despite none of the group having rowing experience before they began training — as he and Saoirse had raised thousands for charity in her lifetime.
“When Saoirse was born, myself and Aoife, my wife, we started a charity calendar which Saoirse became part of,” he said. “Each year we used to raise between €20,000 and €30,000 for charity, raising over €450,000 for heart children through that calendar process.”
He said he thought Team Power of 1 could honour her legacy by rowing almost 5,000km across the Atlantic.
“Saoirse was my superhero. I always wanted to, in her eyes, be her superhero. I wanted to do something epic that she'd be proud of.”
Nearly €450,000 has been raised for children with congenital heart disease in Ireland.
There was plenty of chat in the studio as former President Mary McAleese and former broadcaster Mary Kennedy spoke about hosting their podcast, The Changing Times.
The women touched upon topics like presenting, travel, and politics, with both expressing their disappointment that so few women were added to the Cabinet earlier this week in the Dáil.
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— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) January 31, 2025
“When you don't have equality and a proper proportion of men and women, you're losing out on so much,” Kennedy said.
“You speak about women and wisdom and empathy, and compassion, and those are qualities that that women bring in in deep, deep measure, to everything that they do.” McAleese said it seems to be a “systemic” issue.
“In every other area of life, every other profession, every other calling in life, women are little by little, chapter by chapter, writing new chapters,” she said.
“All that talent, all that energy, is being stupidly suppressed.”
Comedian and actor Pat Shortt is marking 30 years on Irish screens this year and it comes soon after the death of his D’Unbelievables co-sar Jon Kenny.
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— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) January 31, 2025
He said a cherished memory he has of working in recent years with Kenny was when they were both cast in Banshees of Inisheerin.
“We got to work on Banshees then together, which was lovely, that was a really nice one. And not because of the film — Martin [McDonagh, the director] was a big fan of D’Unbelievables back in the day,” he said.
“He was always talking about D’Unbelievables. I think he wrote that little scene at the bar, in particular, it was a really D’Unbelievables dynamic, is what I'd say. He really wanted myself and Jon for it, which was lovely, because we got to rehearse and work together and do a lot of work.”
He described one scene in particular starring the pair that seemed to resonate with cast and crew.
“This particular scene, I noticed the set was filling up. Instead of people going away, a lot of the Irish crew and people were coming in to sit down behind the monitor, squeeze in where they shouldn't have been to see the two D’Unbelievables performed. It was lovely.”
The first ever Irish Gladiator, Cyclone, who hails from Wexford, spoke about joining the iconic show.
“It's such a great show, and to be part of it, because that's such a massive legacy from the original series. But I feel like it was almost made for me,” she said. Referencing the other Irish Gladiator, Paul Mescal, Cyclone said she could “100% take him.”
She said she has been supported by her family, including her brother, professional footballer Festy, and her mother.
“When I made the switch from like academia to sports, my mom was kind of like, you sure about that? But she's come around now, and everyone's so proud of me.”
She said she hopes she encourages other women and girls through the TV show to take up more space in the world.
“One thing Cyclone epitomises is taking up space,” she said.
“Taking up space, doing it unapologetically, and not letting anyone dim your light as well. If people think you are a villain for that, so be it. I’m very confident, so I just like to go for what I'm doing and do it unapologetically.”
She ended the interview by performing squat exercises while lifting host Patrick Kielty.
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— The Late Late Show (@RTELateLateShow) January 31, 2025
