There are some moments that go straight into TV history and often they aren’t even planned. When you’re working in live TV, sometimes things can go amiss, with the ever-present threat of a blooper or a surprise hanging over you.
That doesn’t alway have to be a bad thing, however, as we see from this collection of iconic moments in Irish TV that will keep you giggling over and over again. The fact that most of them were likely unscripted makes them all the better.
1. News reporter Teresa Mannion ensures we make no “unnecessary journeys”
Ireland’s weather may always be dire in the winter, but last year in particular the flooding and rain storms just became a bit too much for some people. Luckily we had brave news reporters such as Teresa Mannion doing her best to struggle against the elements and bring us entertaining updates while we waited for Storm Desmond to pass:
Mannion became an instant Irish legend for her outdoor broadcast and even though the original video went viral, some creative folks also gave us these gems of remixes to keep us laughing right into the spring:
2. Man slips on ice
You’re minding your own business, out and about in Dublin, doing a bit of shopping despite the intense bout of ice and snow, and suddenly you become the talk of the nation.
This poor pedestrian possibly regretted leaving his house that cold morning of January 8, 2010, when he became one of the most laughed at people in the country because of an unfortunate slip on the icy pathway while TV cameras were recording the same street. One appearance on the evening news lasting only a few seconds long, and we’re all still talking about him almost seven years later:
3. Aengus Mac Grianna’s make up touch ups
It’s not only unfortunate passers-by who get caught out by the TV news cameras when they don’t realize they’re being filmed. A few years back, poor news presenter Aengus Mac Grianna was giving his face a bit of a touch up, completely unaware that the previous news item had already finished and he was supposed to be fixing his eyes back on the teleprompter. The mixup may have brought him into the annals of 'viral moment history,' but it also brought him well and truly into our hearts.
4. O’Donovan brother interviews
Easily one of the top stand-out moments of Ireland’s Olympics this year was the O'Donovan brothers from Cork. It wasn’t just their valiant rowing, which brought the country’s first silver medal of the Games, that brought them to the nation’s attention. It was also the string of hilarious interviews they gave in the lead-up to their rowing final that set the nation alight with O'Donovan fever.
It’s hard to pick a favorite interview of the brothers, but they’ve sure given the nation some classic new sayings to add to our repertoire, such as :
“Close the eyes and pull like a dog.”
“There’s plenty of people with two arms and two legs out there like ourselves.”
And “We got to put on the podium pants.”
5. Pat Kenny rips up "Late Late Toy Show" tickets live on air
The "Late Late Toy Show" is an iconic moment in Irish television each year. Broadcast annually at the beginning of December, it takes over the decades long-running chat show “The Late Late Show” to present an evening of holiday cheer and festivity. The Toy Show kicks off the countdown to the Christmas holidays with a look at what toys children will be putting on their wishlist that year.
Aside from the love for the show itself, those lucky enough to be watching in the studio are often treated to a “and there’s one for everybody in the audience,” making tickets to attend some of the hottest around come November. Tickets can only be acquired through a lottery, making the the sight of host Pat Kenny tearing up a pair of them when unhappy with the reaction he received from a competition winner a few weeks earlier even more heartbreaking to watch.
Don’t agree with our top five most iconic TV moments? Let us know what your favorites are in the comments section, below.
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