Ray D’Arcy chat show to spearhead RTÉ’s autumn schedule

It has taken the best part of three decades on Irish airwaves, but Ray D’Arcy is finally getting his own chat show.

The Ray D'Arcy Show, on Saturday nights from the end of September, was the worst kept secret in television until it was unveiled yesterday as part of the RTÉ One autumn schedule.

Ever since D’Arcy returned to RTÉ radio earlier this year, it was rumoured that he would also get his own television show.

“It’s a real privilege to get a chat show at such an early stage in my career,” joked D’Arcy, who added that he was doing handstands on children’s television 27 years ago.

When asked how the new show would differ from the old Saturday Night Show, D'Arcy said: "It will be presented by me. I'm different to Brendan O'Connor. He's taller and has more hair. We have different sensibilities and a different approach to doing things."

D’Arcy played down any major changes to the format, saying it would not be “Ant and Dec. It will be like everything you have seen before except you have never seen me in a chat show”.

Aspiration

He voiced an aspiration to make people “laugh and cry and shout at the television on a Saturday night. Hopefully we will reflect Ireland today, in 2015. We will reflect the conversations that people will be having”.

D’Arcy will still have his afternoon show on RTÉ Radio 1 and so will be working six days a week.

Ryan Tubridy will host his seventh season of the Late Late Show and the 54th series of the world's longest running chat show.

Rivalries between RTÉ chat shows go back to when Pat Kenny's Kenny Live tried to usurp Late Late Show presenter Gay Byrne's crown.

Will there be rivalry between D’Arcy and Tubridy for guests and ratings?

“We respect each other and the two teams respect each other. I wish him well,” Tubridy said. “It’s a competitive world. I only want the best guests. All is fair in love and war.”