Other Television Work
Byrne compered the finals of the Castlebar Song Contest in 1966 and 1967. He also presented The Rose of Tralee festival for 17 years until 1994. Between 1988 and 2001, Byrne hosted the RTÉ People in Need Telethon several times.
Byrne was involved in a famous television moment with colleague Mike Murphy when a disguised Murphy conned him into believing he was a French tourist.
Since "retiring", Byrne has appeared regularly on television. He hosted for one season, the Irish version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. He also hosted The Gay Byrne Music Show and Make 'Em Laugh, a series about comedy in Ireland, Gaybo's Grumpy Men and Class Reunion. In the summer season of 2000, Byrne hosted The Gay Byrne Music Show, which was a studio-based show aired on Saturday nights as a summer filler between 8 July and 19 August 2000 and showcased all genres of music in the company of the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. In April 2009, RTÉ One began broadcasting a series called The Meaning of Life, during which Gay Byrne interviewed public figures about issues of meaning and life. He prefers not to discuss his own faith:
| “ | I am not going to say, because it would compromise me in terms of the show if people knew I had a position. What you find is that they are all searching. No one has the truth. | ” |
In 2011, he presented more summer filler light entertainment in the form of For One Night Only.
Read more about this topic: Gay Byrne
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