HE HAS been a guest on The David Letterman Show and The Late Late Show, starred in sitcoms for Channel 4, fronted his own BBC and RTÉ series, and hosted radio programmes, but come the New Year, Tommy Tiernan will be hosting his own TV chat show.
The Navan born, Galway based comedian will host The Tommy Tiernan Show on RTÉ 1, starting Thursday January 5 at 10.15pm, running for six episodes, and hosting such a show has been a long held ambition for him - and it will have an improvisational element.
“One of the great things about the old Late Late Show was not knowing who the guests were until they appeared on screen," Tommy says. "It kept the whole thing lively, so I just thought, well, how would it be if the host didn’t know who they were until they walked out either. Doing it in front of a live audience is the key for me, it all seems like good unpredictable fun.”
A master of improvisation, Tommy thrives on the adrenaline of no preparation and shows that bring him to the edge of a cliff. He acknowledges that the mystery guest format has the potential for disaster or "some kind of delightful mess", but last year’s pilot episode for The Tommy Tiernan Show proved there is potential for great humour and freewheeling wildness.
Recorded in front of a live audience, in the studio where Tommy made his television debut with Gay Byrne, The Tommy Tiernan Show incorporates stand-up, live music, sketches, and chat. The show is made by Power Pictures for RTÉ and produced by Therese Kelly and David Power.
