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nights in

Sofa Watch: Just help yourself to two doses of Tom Jones

All you need to know about your Irish and international chat show options.

AS ANOTHER FRIDAY night rolls around, a bit of socially distant light banter might help to break up the monotony.

As we all stay in (again), there’s no better night to sit on the couch and watch some quality chat shows.

Here’s our latest round-up of talk show content, there should be plenty here to keep anyone occupied.

  • The Late Late Show, RTÉ One, 9.35pm

It’s not unusual for the Late Late lineup to look like a who’s who of the Montrose canteen but there are some new faces tonight. 

Welsh singer Tom Jones will join Ryan, performing Bob Dylan’s One More Cup of Coffee off his new album Surrounded by Time. 

While Michelle O’Neill, Northern Ireland’s Deputy First Minister, will be making her first appearance on The Late Late.

She’ll discuss how becoming a mother aged 16 changed her life, her hopes for post-Brexit Ireland, the ongoing controversy around her attendance at Bobby Storey’s funeral, and her relationship with DUP First Minister Arlene Foster.

Jamie Wall, who in 2014 was a promising dual GAA star, will speak to Ryan about the day that his life took a remarkable turn, and how he adjusted to paralysis and went on to manage his home club to victory.

Also, two women who were both subjected to terrifying stalking ordeals, Una Ring and Eve McDowell, will be speaking about their campaign to have a specific offence of stalking introduced with longer sentences for the crime.

Plus Villagers will be performing their new single The First Day.

  • The Graham Norton Show, BBC One NI, 10.45pm  

Bad news for Graham Norton fans as the latest season draws to a close tonight with the last of two clip compilation shows. 

It’s good news for Tom Jones fans though as his second appearance of the night will be in Norton’s highlight reel. 

Speaking of two doses, when he was last on in January the Sex Bomb singer told Graham he felt “bulletproof” after receiving both doses of the coronavirus vaccine.

Others appearing tonight including Tom Cruise, Rebel Wilson, Regé-Jean Page, Rosamund Pike,  Keeley Hawes, Ian Wright, Sienna Miller, Sam Neill and Kate Winslet.

The Graham Norton Show / YouTube

Across the pond 

US President Joe Biden hosted a two-day virtual leaders summit to galvanise international action to curb rising global temperatures, during which he announced the US had doubled its ambitions on slashing greenhouse gas emissions, while Boris Johnson got hung up on, er, bunny hugging.

Yes, we should all care about what world leaders are doing to tackle the changing climate, but if you just want to see all the technical mishaps and gaffes from the first day of Biden’s summit, that’s okay too.

Courtesy of the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, here they are:

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon / YouTube

Fox News host Tucker Carlson usually provides plenty of content for the hosts of late-night, so naturally, Jimmy Kimmel jumped at Carlson’s recent meltdown in response to a former New York corrections officer who criticised the recently-convicted Derek Chauvin for using excessive force on George Floyd.

Before cutting his guest off, Carlson let out an abrupt cackle, a clip Kimmel played twice during his monologue.

“What the hell was that? He laughs like the villain in the movie who realizes James Bond just put the bomb back on him, and he’s about to explode,” Kimmel said.

“What human makes a sound like that?”

Kimmel joked that his other right-wing foe, My Pillow CEO Mike Lindell, is at least consistent as he is “bananas all the time”.

Lindell became a household name in the US as the ‘My Pillow Guy’ thanks to his television ads. But he has stirred controversy thanks to his relationship with Trump and the misinformation he has peddled. 

Lindell and Kimmell have had an ongoing war of words since the November election, but Lindell recently accepted an invitation to appear on the chat show – so watch out for that this week. 

Jimmy Kimmel Live / YouTube

Former US President George W Bush also made an appearance on Kimmel this week where he was asked about everything from the nuclear codes to his friendship with Michelle Obama (ok, not everything).

Meanwhile, over on Last Week Tonight, John Oliver explains why people file for bankruptcy, how needlessly difficult the process can be, and the ways we can better serve people struggling with debt. 

From the Archives

In March 1973, Marlon Brando won the best actor Oscar for his work in The Godfather, beating out contenders like Peter O’Toole and Laurence Olivier.

Brando famously did not attend, and Apache actress and activist Sacheen Littlefeather took the stage in his place.

Littlefeather said Brando “very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award” as he wanted to protest the movie industry’s treatment of Native Americans 

With the 93rd Academy Awards taking place this weekend, here’s Brando talking about that now-infamous moment. 

“Perhaps it was unkind of me,” Brando said of “ruining the audience’s fantasy with the intrusion of a little reality”. 

The Dick Cavett Show / YouTube

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