Kielty hails 'a forever night' as 1.7m watch Toy Show

RTÉ's Elf-themed Late Late Toy Show was watched by over 1.7 million people across the weekend and raised over €3.6 million for the Toy Show Appeal.

Making his debut as a host, Patrick Kielty presented the show, which was the most-watched programme of the year and broke records on RTÉ Player with 550,000 streams from 147 countries.

Watch: The Late Late Toy Show opening number

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On social media, #LateLateToyShow generated 26.2 million video views and 2.2 million interactions.

Review: Patrick Kielty is everyone's Buddy as he makes his Toy Show debut

Kielty channelled Buddy the Elf on the show, which this year featured over 170 performers from around the country, including toy demos from kids such as County Clare’s Sheamie, sport-loving Stevie from Kilkenny, and Tipperary’s Sophie, who raced to the studio in time for Patrick to surprise her with a trip to Disneyland.

"I’m still coming back down to earth from an amazing night last Friday," said Kietly. "I want to express huge thanks to everyone who helped make this year’s Late Late Toy Show so special.

Watch: Stevie Mulrooney gives a rousing rendition of Ireland's Call on Late Late Toy Show

"To all of you who watched, to the brilliant kids who brought their magic and put a giant smile on all of our faces.

"And, to every last one of you who gave so generously to our Toy Show Appeal - you have made a massive difference to so many children’s lives - thank you! Being part of it is something I will never forget - a forever night!"

The Irish diaspora worldwide stayed connected with home through RTÉ Player from a record-breaking 147 countries including first-time streams from Cameroon, the British Virgin Islands, Rwanda, Sierra Leon, Iraq and Afghanistan.

Watch: Sheamie Garrihy from Kilfenora having the craic with Patrick Kielty during the Toy Show

Almost a quarter of live streams on Friday night were from outside Ireland making the show the most-watched programme on RTÉ Player for 2023, with figures continuing to grow. There was a 97% increase on UK RTÉ Player streams up from 33k in 2022 to 65k in 2023, with streams more than doubling in Northern Ireland.

The Late Late Toy Show 2023 highlights on The Late Late Show YouTube channel garnered over half a million views and counting, with Toy Show icon Sheamie and the Irish rugby surprise featuring in the top trending YouTube videos across Ireland over the weekend.  

Watch: Granny Carol is surprised by her family on the Late Late Toy Show - she hasn't seen in six years!

Stevie’s performance of Ireland’s Call generated 4.8 million views across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and X, while Sheamie’s words of wisdom to Patrick, and Sophia’s backstage performance of her rap won fans on all platforms.

Once again, audiences responded with huge generosity towards the Toy Show Appeal, which saw over €3.6 million donated by viewers to help children's charities across Ireland in the year ahead.

This brings the total amount of funds raised by the Appeal to over €21 million since the inaugural Toy Show Appeal in 2020.

Denise Charlton, Chief Executive, Community Foundation Ireland said: "The extraordinary generosity of Toy Show viewers will ensure the magic continues long after the Christmas decorations come down. Hundreds of thousands of children will have their lives transformed.

Watch: Patrick Kielty and The Late Late Toy Show made eight-year-old Sophie Quirke's dreams come true

"There will be more essential supports including food, clothing, therapy as well as health and wellbeing services. In addition, play and creativity will become more accessible to all.

"The Foundation will work with leading child advocates and our partners in RTÉ to begin the process of distributing the Toy Show fund to every county. For now, our message to viewers is Thank You!"

The Late Late Toy Show with Irish Sign Language (ISL) was also available live on Friday night on RTÉ Player and RTÉ News, with over 13,000 streams to date and growing. 

Watch: Freya sings Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas on Late Late Toy Show

Alan Tyler, RTÉ Head of Entertainment, Comedy and Music said: "We are delighted that Patrick's first Late Late Toy show has connected so well with the audience.

"It is a testament to the hard work of the whole team who put together a truly unique and special show which brought the nation together, and, we hope, delivered a little Christmas magic to homes right across Ireland and across the world.

"All of us on the show owe a huge thank you to the audience whose generosity in donating to the Toy Show Appeal is both remarkable and humbling. It will make a real difference to children's lives throughout the year."

Catch up on all The Late Late Toy Show magic on the RTÉ Player.

Kielty hails 'a forever night' as 1.7 million watch Toy Show

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