The Gerry Ryan Show and current host of "The Late Late Show" Ryan Tubridy began his career with "The Gerry Ryan Show", working as a teaboy before obtaining his own breakfast show, "The Full Irish", a programme which Gerry Ryan once claimed was "the most exciting broadcast at that hour of the morning since Ian Dempsey started on Today FM". Ryan has since stated his belief that it was "a giant act of folly" for Ryan Tubridy to move to RTÉ Radio 1. Ryan viewed Tubridy as "kind of like a son" whom he used to (and still does) lecture frequently. He said he
Tubridy Tonight May 2004, RTÉ announced that Ryan Tubridy would host a new Saturday night chat show that coming autumn. "Tubridy Tonight" made its debut on 16 October 2004 for an initial run of ten programmes. It featured Gráinne and Síle Seoige, Hector Ó hEochagáin and Royston Brady as the first interviewees. The programme received relatively good reviews, with Shane Hegarty of the "Irish Times" describing the show as having gotten off "to a ropey start but improved as it went along." Hegarty bemoaned the fact that the show was broadcast live as "it added nothing to the show apart from a