It will be the last with Tubridy at the helm.
The Late Late Show is telling viewers to dust off their cowboy boots as The Late Late Country Music Special returns to screens this week.
Back in full for the first time since 2019, host Ryan Tubridy will be joined by the best of the Irish country scene. Daniel O’Donnell, Chantelle Padden, Claudia Buckley, Cliona Hagan, Clodagh Lawlor, Derek Ryan, Johnny Brady, Margo, Nathan Carter, Niamh Lynne, Olivia Douglas, Philomena Begley, TR Dallas, Trudi Lalor and the Toy Show’s Cailin Joe lead the line-up.
Ahead of the programme, RTÉ revealed that a country music legend will be inducted into the Irish Country Music Hall of Fame, an accolade previously awarded to Daniel O’Donnell and Philomena Begley.
“Daniel, Cliona, Philomena, and Nathan have worked 9-5 to unveil an exciting new project exclusively on Friday night’s show and they will pay tribute to the man who started it all, Ireland’s king of country, Big Tom,” the broadcaster also said.
As well as this, the show will welcome back the Toy Show’s Tyrone teen Caillin Joe to perform a Glen Campbell classic, while some of the leading female artists in Ireland’s country music scene will put their own distinct twist on the number one song in the Irish charts at the moment: Miley Cyrus’ ‘Flowers’.
It will be Tubridy’s last Late Late Country Music Special
Meanwhile, other musicians will perform the songs that changed their lives including Irish originals and hits from Dolly Parton, The Bellamy Brothers and Garth Brooks.
“And… throughout the night of songs and stories, one of our audience members will get the surprise of their lives,” RTÉ added.
The country music special is noteworthy as it will be the last with Tubridy at the helm, following the recent news that he is stepping down as Late Late host.
Reflecting on the tradition, he said:
“It all started out really when I was not long in the job as the presenter of The Late Late Show and when driving around the country, I kept seeing posters of gigs of different country stars and it was a world that I wasn’t familiar with. And so, it began.
“I quickly learned that it was a world that brought people together and while I will miss seeing everybody on an annual basis, I have made a lot of friends in the country music world, and that has been my privilege.”
The upcoming Late Late Country Music Special airs on RTÉ One on Friday, 31 March at 9.35 pm.
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