Claire Byrne breaks silence on RTE exit and ‘meet this challenge’ move
Claire Byrne has broken her silence on leaving RTE for the first time during tonight’s The Late Late Show.
In August, the broadcaster announced she would be departing along with her RTE Radio 1 programme in October.
Shortly after Claire’s exit was confirmed, it emerged she would be joining Newstalk.
READ MORE: Man “damaged hospital equipment and injured officers” in “shocking incident”READ MORE: Christmas Eve assault in Ballymena left man needing hospital treatment and police seeking answers
Throughout her RTE career, she fronted numerous programmes spanning television and radio, including News At One and Claire Byrne Live.
She wrapped up Today with Claire Byrne on 31st October and is due to launch her new Newstalk show next month, reported RSVP Live.
Chatting with Patrick Kielty on Friday night’s Late Late Show, Claire confirmed there were no hard feelings surrounding her RTE departure.
“It wasn’t a sudden thing,” she explained. “I think it was age related. I turned 50 last summer. It does make you think about where you’re going, are you a bit too comfy in your seat?”
“If you feel that you’re doing something and you’re comfortable, you want to shake it up a bit. So Newstalk came along and they said, ‘we have huge ambitions, we want to grow the audience’. Initially I thought, you know what, I’m grand where I am, thank you very much. Then I thought why am I not going to meet this challenge?”
“I was very happy here. I have had opportunities here to do great things. However, did I want to try and stretch my chops a bit? Did I want to try and push on and do something different? Yes, I always did, and so ultimately that was the decision I made. I’m excited to get started.”
Claire discussed her feelings about stepping into the shoes of Pat Kenny, who is transitioning to a weekend slot on Newstalk.
“Nerves are good,” she expressed. “Pat is an absolute icon, a legend. We presented together you know, on Primetime. Not many people remember that, myself, Miriam and Pat.”
She admitted: “It is intimidating taking over his slot, but it’ll be a whole new show and I’m really excited to get going.”
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter.
