The Tommy Tiernan Show lands more viewers than The Late Late Show for the first time

RTÉ's The Tommy Tiernan Show was watched by more viewers last weekend than The Late Late Show for the first time since its 2016 launch.

Last Friday's The Late Late Show featured guests including Belfast rock trio Dea Matrona, Nathan Carter, Allen Leech (Downton Abbey, Bohemian Rhapsody); Home of the Year judges Hugh Wallace, Amanda Bone and Suzie Mc Adam; and Seána Kerslake - star of the new hit drama Smother.

Now in its 5th season and with five more episodes in the series set to air, The Tommy Tiernan Show was watched by 453,000 people on Saturday (March 13).

The acclaimed improvised chat show saw Tommy in conversation with broadcaster Eamon Dunphy, singer Tolu Makay with poet FeliSpeaks, and mental health professional Joe Slattery. Music was provided by Lisa O’Neill.

Eamon Dunphy was almost moved to tears as he recalled the death of a childhood friend who introduced him to two of the most important things in his life. The controversial pundit and former footballer told the host about Dessie Toal, who introduced him to football and cigarettes at the age of eight while they were growing up in Drumcondra.

"I do remember very well people who were pivotal to my life. Dessie Toal was the guy who introduced me to two things - football and cigarettes - when I was eight. Without him, and he was the older guy in the street gang I latched myself on to, I remember him very fondly and I spoke at his funeral mass."

“It does move me, deeply.”

Eamon Dunphy chats with great affection to @Tommedian about his late childhood pal who introduced him to the joys of football and cigarettes aged 8!#TommyTiernanShow @Dunphy_Official pic.twitter.com/HIdJch9PCE

— RTÉ One (@RTEOne) March 13, 2021

Meanwhile, FeliSpeaks and Tolu Makay enlightened audiences about the Black Irish experience.

Tolü Makay's cover of 'N17' by the Saw Doctors was widely acclaimed while a poem by FeliSpeaks is now part of the Leaving Certificate curriculum. The singer-songwriter and poet have been friends since they were 15.

“We were both born in Nigeria and moved here as children. We’re Nigerian born but Ireland formed a lot of our personality,” FeliSpeaks said.

“There's quirks and jokes that straddle both fences, Nigerian and Irish, so you're nearly too black to be Irish but you’re too Irish to be Nigerian.”

“That happens a lot,” Makay agreed and added she feels “pride” about the place they are carving in society.

“I feel like we're the first of our own. We own this space and we should, we should be allowed to own it. I can switch into the Nigerian accent and then the Irish accent so quickly, it just is. It is just who we are and I think we should embody and embrace that.”

“I think part of the complexity is the fact that it is such a young, budding space.”@FeliSpeaks and @ToluMakay talk to @Tommedian about the exciting evolution of the Black Irishness#TommyTiernanShow pic.twitter.com/RWMbZceN2N

— RTÉ One (@RTEOne) March 13, 2021

If you missed Saturday's episode of The Tommy Tiernan Show, check it out here on the RTE Player here.

Tune in this Saturday, March 20th on RTÉ One at 10:15pm.