The Late Late Show owl The Late Late Show owl "The Late Late Show" owl is a motif that has been used by the world's longest-running chat show, "The Late Late Show" on RTÉ One television, since its inception in 1962. The owl symbol (a barn owl) is the only remaining theme from the classic format other than the show's name and the traditional annual ‘toy show’ edition. The first thing Ryan Tubridy said when announcing his plans for his takeover as host in August 2009 was: "I can tell you that the owl is not dead". Tubridy posed for photographs on the set holding
The Late Late Toy Show number. The show started with The Bare Necessities song which included singing and dancing from Ryan Tubridy in a Baloo costume. During the show, Dermot Bannon from Room to Improve surprised an architectural fan, rugby player Jamie Heaslip presented a young fan with his signed Ireland jersey that he wore during the Autumn International win over Australia, and world number 2 ranked golfer Rory McIlroy presented a young golfing fan with signed versions of Rory McIlroy PGA Tour and tickets to the 2017 Irish Open. The Toy Show was RTÉ's most watched programme of 2016, with 1.4 million viewers watching