Pat Kenny opens up on decision to leave RTE and says he has ‘no intention’ to stop working when he turns 75

Newstalk presenter Pat Kenny has shared his thoughts on his departure from RTE nine years ago and what he believes the broadcaster could do better.

The well-known media personality departed RTE in 2013 after a 41-year career there as a radio and TV star.

He presented the Late Late Show from 1999 to 2009, as well as Today with Pat Kenny on RTE Radio 1 and Frontline on RTE One until he left RTE in 2013.

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The 74-year-old has opened up on his decision to head to pastures new at Newstalk nine years ago and what he sees as one problem with RTE.

He says he was not happy at the decision to “subsume” Frontline, the current affairs show he presented, into Prime Time.

“I know it was the wrong decision because they reversed it when I left and it became Claire Byrne Tonight. They took it back off Prime Time as soon as they decently could,” he told the Sunday Independent.

“I couldn’t negotiate a separate contract for radio, and then when I was approached by Newstalk I just thought, ‘What the hell, I’ve nothing to prove anymore in RTE’.”

Mr Kenny went on to voice what he sees as problems with how RTE finds new broadcasting stars across radio and television.

He said: “The problem with broadcasting is finding the talent. In all my time in RTE I was never interviewed for any job — I was auditioned.

“And I think it’s a problem that’s not realised by broadcasters, particularly by RTE, who now interview people for TV. Really, if you’re looking for performance, you should be auditioning people.

“Presenters need the knowledge, but they also need the X-factor. Unless they can sell it, unless they can be likable on TV, it won’t work.

“And the only way to find out that is by auditioning them. Don’t forget, in the early days of television, all the guys came from a showbiz background — even RTE’s original newsreader, Charles Mitchel, was an actor.”

The Dalkey native then gave an insight into his future plans, with no intention to stop working when he turns 75 next January.

“I’m not working because I have to, I’m working because I enjoy it,” he said.

Whether he intends to stay with Newstalk is not clear.

However, he has ideas that he is “playing around with in my mind” about potentially developing a project with a production company that could potentially be sold abroad.

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