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29th Sep 2018

WATCH: Pat Kenny speaks about the moment he tore up Late Late Toy Show tickets on air

Carl Kinsella

Late Late Show

A seminal moment in Irish broadcasting history.

Back in 2008, The Late Late Show host Pat Kenny was at the centre of controversy. He had called a prize-winner, on air, to inform her that she’d won a grand prize of a €10,000 shopping trip… as well as two tickets to The Late Late Toy Show.

“The Toy Show” is an institution of Irish culture, so people were shocked when the woman said she wouldn’t actually have any interest in attending.

Kenny himself took the news very badly, ripping up the tickets live on air — and creating one of the most shocking and bizarre moments in Irish TV history.

Clip via curiouspie.

Last night, Kenny returned to The Late Late Show as a guest and defended himself for tearing up the tickets back in 2008.

“I got into terrible trouble for tearing up two Toy Show tickets”.

“People were outraged. ‘How dare you destroy…?’ These were like gold, they’re even more valuable now… But people didn’t realise that we print the tickets so we could just print two more. The following week I gave them away on my radio show”.

You can watch Pat Kenny explain himself below.

Clip via The Late Late Show.

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