Joe Duffy has emotional moment on Late Late Show, but viewers ask the same question about another guest
Joe Duffy teared up talking about his mother on the Late Late Show, after announcing his retirement from RTÉ.
The Liveline presenter announced on Thursday that he was leaving the national broadcaster after 37 years, and 27 years on Liveline — with him chatting about his tenure on the Late Late on Friday night.
Never shying away from speaking about his mother Mabel, Joe choked up a little bit when speaking about her and just how far the country has come — even joking that his mum would downplay what he did when working for RTÉ.
'I know, anyone who listens to Liveline's going 'oh, Joe's going to talk about Mabel,' [but] Mabel my mother had a great line,' Joe told Patrick Kielty. 'She was in Ballyer, down at the shops, and someone who returned to Ballyer who'd been away for a few years, said 'Mabel, I heard your Joseph is working at RTÉ. What's he doing?' and she said 'he answers the phones.''
While downplaying answering the phones in the context of being one of the highest rated radio shows in the country, Joe said that his mother's advice to him was 'you're never as good as anyone says you are, but you're never as bad as anyone says you are.'
People loved listening to Joe's interview, with one writing on Twitter (X) 'What a national treasure Joe Duffy is.' Joe Duffy teared up talking about his mother on the Late Late Show, after announcing his retirement from RTÉ. Pic: Late Late Show/X
'Don't forget Joe Duffy is a man of the people,' another wrote, while a third wrote 'That was a great interview. Pathos and humour. Joe comes across as very humble.'
While Joe Duffy being on the Late Late was always going to happen, the rest of the guest list came as a surprise — with former American Football player and seven-time Super Bowl Champion Tom Brady discussing the upcoming NFL game in Croke Park.
While the joke has always been that the Late Late's guests are usually reserved for those hanging around the RTÉ canteen, they sometimes are able to pull it out of the bag — with people incredibly surprised that the GOAT ended up appearing in Donnybrook. Also on the Late Late was former NFL Quarterback Tom Brady — with people utterly baffled as to how RTÉ managed to pull off getting the GOAT on the show. Pic: Late Late Show/X
'We got Tom Brady on the Late Late before GTA 6,' one person joked on Twitter (X), while RTÉ's NFL correspondent Michael McQuaid wrote 'If you told me in 2019 that Dublin would have an NFL game in 2025 and Tom Brady would be on the Late Late show….' alongside a laughing emoji.
Others joked that the quarterback will be appearing in other random locations nationwide, with FM104's Crossy tweeting 'what nightclub is Tom Brady opening this weekend.'
The Late Late Show's season finale can be watched back on the RTÉ Player.
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