Irish-born, chat show host, Graham Norton, was hit with a £788,530 (€909,406) cut in his TV pay last year to £2.236m (€2.57m), according to new accounts filed by So Television Ltd.

The cut in pay last year followed an increase of £956,638 to the host's pay in 2021.

Originally from Clondalkin, Norton's pay which is made up of presenter fees, production fees and royalties plummeted last year after So Television’s revenues and profits took a hit. TV fees are the entertainer's main income stream.

So Television heavily relies on The Graham Norton Show for most of its revenues and company revenues in 2022 decreased by £945,427 from £12.7m to £11.75m.

Despite producing two more hours of television in 2022 compared to 2021 "due to the commissioning of new shows in 2022," the firm's revenues still decreased.

The director has since stood by the popularity of The Graham Norton Show in the UK and internationally.

It is understood that the talk show host receives separate fees for his Saturday and Sunday morning shows on Virgin Radio UK as well as receiving a small fraction of the sales figure in royalties for his critically acclaimed novels.

Although The Graham Norton Show has always been known for having a great number of A-listers on the couch, the current Hollywood actors’ strike has made a huge impact on the choice of guests for the current season.

The directors of the show states: "The external environment is expected to remain uncertain and competitive in 2023 but the directors remain confident that the company is well placed with the broadcasters and commercial partners to exploit opportunities that become available".