Traditionally aired on the last Friday of November, this year’s Late Late Toy Show has been changed and tonight’s the night. So will it be worth the wait? Read on to discover the all-important theme and what’s in store as Patrick Kielty returns for his second year as host.
When is it on?
The Late Late Toy Show kicks off on RTÉ One at 9.35pm and runs until 11.55pm or so. It will be broadcast worldwide on RTÉ Player.
What about the theme?
Following last year’s Elf-inspired show, the 2024 edition will transport viewers to the world of Kevin McCallister with a Home Alone theme.
Providing some nineties nostalgia for the big kids among us, the set will feature Kevin’s kitchen, his sittingroom and treehouse – not forgetting brother Buzz’s bedroom.
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Will there be singing and dancing?
The Toy Show wouldn’t be the Toy Show without a troop of all-singing all-dancing munchkins. RTÉ says 250 toy testers and performers will take part on Friday – a leap up from last year’s 170 – so you can be sure to enjoy a fine array of tunes and visual spectacles throughout the night. Viewers can anticipate a whirlwind trip to the glittering land of Oz as some Wicked-inspired performances are on the cards.
In a first for the Late Late Toy Show, children from every county in Ireland will take to the studio floor for a Toy Show County Parade. Expect swirling, twirling, gymnastics, pageantry and plenty of county pride.
How about accessibility?
Sarah-Jane Regan and Jason Maguire will present The Late Late Toy Show live with Irish sign language on the RTÉ News channel and RTÉ Player, working with hearing interpreters Ciara Grant and Lisa Harvey-Coleman.
The broadcast can also be watched on catch-up on RTÉ Player. Audio description will be available for the repeats at 3.05pm on Sunday and at 12.05am on Tuesday (last thing on Monday night), and afterwards on RTÉ Player. The programme will be audio-described by Clara Murray and Bemi Stack.
Will there be any special guests?
Matilda’s Alisha Weir, Irish rugby players Bundee Aki and Peter O’Mahony made appearances on the show in 2023. Glancing back to 2021, Ed Sheeran and Olympic gold medallist Kellie Harrington graced our screens – so whoever will turn up tonight is anyone’s guess.
What about the all important toys?
Among the playthings to marvel over and inevitably add to the Christmas shopping list this year will be the BeyBlade X Xtreme Battle Set and Hot Wheels Monster Truck Epic Loop Bundle. For those who gravitate towards something more on the soft and cuddly side there’s the FurReal Peanut the Playful Monkey and Real FX Disney Stitch Puppet Interactive Toy.
Some home-grown toys will also be featured, including Stomp Rockets and an Irish bracelet-weaving set.
Book worms can look forward to the show’s much-loved book review segment which will see mythologies and histories to the fore. The Dictionary Story by Oliver Jeffers, Nina Peanut: Mega Mystery Solver by Sarah Bowie and The Story of Irish Rugby by Gerard Siggins are among the books being highlighted later.
Back to basics: Toy Show origins
The first Late Late Toy Show aired in 1975 when it was a half-hour segment presented by Gay Byrne to help parents stumped as to what Santa should bring to their kids for Christmas, while the kids themselves were tucked up in bed. Since then, it has grown into one of the biggest dates in Irish broadcasting, with 1.8 million tuning in live in 2021 – a staggering 81 per cent of people watching at the time, and a big jump even over 2020, when 1.5 million people, or 59 per cent of the available audience, tuned in live. Last year, 1.7 million watched Patrick Kielty’s hosting debut over the Toy Show weekend.
In 2023, a global audience from 158 countries tuned in to watch the Toy Show on RTÉ Player, with viewers from New York, Berlin, Sydney, Madrid, Toronto and more.
