Unofficially marking the start of the Christmas season, RTÉ One’s “The Late Late Toy Show”, one of the most-watched shows in Ireland, will be available for families around the world to watch on RTÉ Player this Friday (28th November) at 9:35pm (Irish Standard Time).

This unique cultural phenomenon, which first aired on RTÉ in the early 1970s, is a stand-out childhood highlight for generations of Irish people and continues to attract record audiences with an average of nearly 1.4 million people in Ireland tuning in to watch the show live on RTÉ One last year and attracting over 120,000 streams on RTÉ Player.

 For families living abroad with Irish links this much loved tradition can be passed on to the next generation with The Late Late Toy Show being available to watch live and on-demand on RTÉ Player www.rte.ie/Player, across desktop, mobile and tablet for up to 21 days.

Host of “The Late Late Toy Show”, Ryan Tubridy, said “You may not live in Ireland but thanks to RTÉ Player you can come ‘home’ and watch “The Late Late Toy Show” with your family and friends live on Friday night. I’m really excited about what we have planned for this year’s show. It’s one of my favorite shows of the year and it promises to be as fun and entertaining as ever. So tune in wherever you are.”

“The Late Late Toy Show” first began in the early 1970s as a half-hour slot at the end of “The Late Late Show”, designed to give parents an idea of what toys were in the shops for Christmas while their children were asleep. It soon became a one-night show in its own right, complete with children toy-testers and performers. It was initially presented by Gay Byrne until Pat Kenny took over in 1999 and then Ryan Tubridy in 2009.

Join the conversation on Twitter and share your Late Late Toy Show moments, using the hashtag #latelatetoyshow.