''The Cafe'' is a talk show aimed at young people in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. The show debuted in 2004. It was broadcast on

RTÉ Two (RTÉ) (; Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the national broadcaster of Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on television, radio and online. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while ...

each Friday evening at 19:00, having switched from its previous location in the Thursday scheduling from 7 November 2008. It was presented by

Aidan Power Aidan Power (born 30 March 1979) is an Irish television and radio presenter. Career Born in Templeogue, Dublin, Power was educated at St. Mac Dara's community college and then Ballyfermot Senior College where he obtained a diploma in broadca ...

, although Laura Woods and Liam McCormack were his previous co-presenters. The waitress was Avril Kelly, who served drinks to the audience and guests and acts as the announcer of what would occur following the commercial break.opening . Chats were conducted with two or three guests, there were comic inserts and a musical performance rounded off the show (although sometimes a musical performance may have started the show a well). Past guests included Jason Byrne and

Donna and Joseph McCaul Donna and Joseph McCaul (born 30 May 1984 and 1989, respectively), also known as The McCauls, are a brother and sister musical duo who represented Ireland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2005 in Ukraine. They were not pre-qualified for the final ...

, PJ Gallagher and

Tom McGurk Tom or TOM may refer to: * Tom (given name), a diminutive of Thomas or Tomás or an independent Aramaic given name (and a list of people with the name) Characters * Tom Anderson, a character in ''Beavis and Butt-Head'' * Tom Beck, a character ...

, Glen Wallace and

Jennifer Metcalfe Jennifer Joanne Metcalfe (born 4 September 1983) is an English actress. She is best known for her roles of Jade Nicholls in Emmerdale and Mercedes McQueen in the Channel 4 soap opera ''Hollyoaks'', which she has appeared in since 2006. Her port ...

Caroline Morahan Caroline Morahan is an Irish actress and television host. In 2010, she was chosen as the face of Littlewoods Ireland. Early life Caroline Morahan graduated from Dublin City University with a Bachelor of Arts in communication studies, earni ...

, Amanda Byram,

Michelle Heaton Michelle Christine Heaton (born 19 July 1979) is an English pop singer, actress and television personality. She was a member of the pop group Liberty X from 2001 until they announced their split in 2007; they reformed one year later for a smal ...

Nicola McLean Nicola June McLean (born 18 September 1981) is an English glamour model; and television and media personality. She was a contestant in '' I'm a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here!'' in 2008, and ''Celebrity Big Brother'' in 2012 and again in the ...

, Daithí Ó Sé,

The Kinetiks The Kinetiks were a Meteor Award-nominated Irish rock, pop and indie musical ensemble from Dublin. They were vocalist and guitarist Gaz Harding, guitarist Sean Brennan, bassist Jim McGuire, and drummer Paul Donohoe. On 11 July 2008, they perfo ...

The Coronas The Coronas are an Irish rock band that originated in Dublin. They release their music by their own independent record label, 3ú Records, and are based between Dublin and London. They have released seven studio albums, '' Heroes or Ghosts'' ...

, Rosanna Davision, Jacob Byrne,

Oliver Callan Oliver Callan (born 27 December 1980) is an Irish vocal and performance satirist and impressionist known as the creator of '' Callan's Kicks'', '' Nob Nation'' and for frequent appearances on ''The Saturday Night Show''. He rose to fame durin ...

(aka Gay Byrne) and

Pat Kenny Patrick Kenny (born 29 January 1948) is an Irish broadcaster, who currently hosts the daily radio show ''The Pat Kenny Show'' on Newstalk and the current affairs show ''Pat Kenny Tonight'' on Virgin Media One. Prior to this, Kenny had a 41-yea ...

, wrestlers

Scotty 2 Hotty Scott Ronald Garland (born July 2, 1973) is an American professional wrestler who was most recently signed to WWE as a trainer at the WWE Performance Center. He also competed under the ring names "Too Hot" Scott Taylor (1991–1999) and Scotty 2 ...

and Joe Legend,

The Saw Doctors The Saw Doctors are an Irish rock band. Formed in 1986 in Tuam, County Galway, they have achieved eighteen Top 30 singles in the Republic of Ireland including three number ones. Their first number one, " I Useta Lover," topped the Irish charts ...

, panellist

John Bishop John Marcus Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former footballer. Bishop formerly played football as a midfielder for Winsford United F.C., Crewe Alexandra F.C., Runcorn F.C., Rhyl F.C., Witton Al ...

and '' Skins'' actors Mike Bailey,

Daniel Kaluuya Daniel Kaluuya (; born 24 February 1989) is a British actor. Prominent both on screen and stage, he has received numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, two BAFTA Awards, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Golden Globe Award, and no ...

and

Larissa Wilson Larissa Hope Wilson (born 5 May 1989) is an English actress best known for her role as Jal Fazer in the first two series of the UK television series '' Skins''. Career In February 2008, Wilson guested at the Shockwaves NME Awards alongside fel ...

. ''The Cafe'' completed transmission of its fifth season on 27 March 2009. A sixth season was revealed on 14 August 2009 by Aidan Power to be on the way. The last episode was broadcast on 2 April 2010 due to its axing by RTÉ to make way for new programming.

Season one

Season two

Guests in season two included

Keith Duffy Keith Peter Thomas Francis Julian John Duffy (born 1 October 1974) is an Irish singer, actor, radio and television presenter and drummer who began his professional music career as part of Irish boy band Boyzone alongside Ronan Keating, Mik ...

Adam Woodyatt Adam Brinley Woodyatt (born 28 June 1968) is an English actor. He is known for his role as Ian Beale in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', which he played between 1985 and 2022. Early life and education Woodyatt was born on 28 June 1968 in W ...

, Tony Fenton,

Nicholas Hoult Nicholas Caradoc Hoult (born 7 December 1989) is an English actor. His body of work includes supporting work in big-budget mainstream productions and starring roles in independent projects in both the American and the British film industries ...

Marty Whelan Marty may refer to: Names * Marty (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters, also includes stage names * Marty (surname), a list of people Places in the United States * Marty, California, a former settlement * Marty, Min ...

Ronnie Drew Joseph Ronald Drew (16 September 1934 – 16 August 2008) was an Irish singer, folk musician and actor who achieved international fame during a fifty-year career recording with The Dubliners. He is most recognised for his lead vocals on the si ...

Larry Gogan Larry is a masculine given name in English, derived from Lawrence or Laurence. It can be a shortened form of those names. Larry may refer to the following: People Arts and entertainment *Larry D. Alexander, American artist/writer * Larry Boon ...

and

Liz Bonnin Elizabeth Bonnin (born 16 September 1976) is a French science, wildlife and natural history presenter, who has worked on television in both Ireland and the United Kingdom. She presented morning show '' RI:SE'' and music show ''Top of the Pops'' ...

. Music was provided by Turn,

Ham Sandwich The ham sandwich is a common type of sandwich. The bread may be fresh or toasted, and it can be made with a variety of toppings including cheese and vegetables like lettuce, tomato, onion or pickle slices. Various kinds of mustard and mayonnai ...

Gemma Hayes Gemma Hayes (born 11 August 1977) is an Irish musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Primarily known as a vocalist and guitarist, she is also proficient with a wide range of instruments, including the piano and the harmonica. She is also a m ...

Luan Parle Luan Parle (pronounced Lu-on) is an Irish performing artist, songwriter, composer and producer. Parle won a Meteor Ireland Music Award for Best Irish Female and has written and recorded with songwriters and producers Bill Bottrell, Chris Kimse ...

, The Answer,

Katie Melua Ketevan Katie Melua (; ka, ქეთევან "ქეთი" მელუა, ; born 16 September 1984) is a Georgian and British singer and songwriter. She was born in Kutaisi and raised in Belfast and London. Under the management of com ...

and

Damien Dempsey Damien Dempsey (born 9 June 1975) is an Irish singer and songwriter who mixes traditional Irish folk contemporary lyrics that deliver social and political commentaries on Irish society. Damien sings in his native, working class accent in the Eng ...

. ;Exam specials ^1. Byrne was hired as a waiter for these five episodes. He served coffee to ''The Cafes guests.

Season three

Season three included twenty-seven editions of ''The Cafe'', thirteen of which were in 2006 and fourteen of which were in 2007. Among those to provide music were

Director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

, Messiah J & The Expert,

The Frank and Walters The Frank and Walters are an alternative pop band from Cork city in Ireland. The band was founded in 1989 and named in honour of two eccentric Cork characters. Members The original band line-up included Paul Linehan (vocalist and bassist), his ...

Fionn Regan Fionn Regan (born 1981) is an Irish folk musician and singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Bray, Regan came to prominence with the release of his debut studio album, '' The End of History'' in 2006. He had been releasing extended plays for six ...

The Blizzards The Blizzards are an Irish band from Mullingar in County Westmeath. They were formed by Niall Breslin in late 2004, and also feature Dec Murphy (drums), Justin Ryan, Anthony Doran, Louize Carroll (bass) and Aidan Lynch (keyboards). They have ...

, Boss Volenti,

Vyvienne Long Vyvienne Long is a musician from Co. Dublin, Ireland. A classically trained cellist from the College of Music, Dublin and the Escola de Musica in Barcelona, she also sings and plays piano and writes music for her quintet which comprises 2 cel ...

, Delorentos,

Iain Archer Iain Archer is a writer, producer and solo artist from Bangor, Northern Ireland. He is a two-time Ivor Novello Award winner, winning the 2004 Album Award – ''Final Straw'' by Snow Patrol and Most Performed Work in 2016 for Grammy nominated ...

and

Royseven Royseven are a six-piece alternative rock band from Dublin, Ireland. They are known for songs such as "Dance" and " We Should Be Lovers", and have released two albums to date: '' The Art of Insincerity'' (2006) and '' You Say, We Say'' (2011). ...

;''The Best of the Cafe'' Throughout June and July 2007, RTÉ broadcast six special editions of ''The Cafe''. These included past interviews and performances.

Season four

For season four, Aidan Power's co-presenter Laura Woods left for pastures new and was replaced by Liam McCormack. On 25 October Ziggy Lichman guest presented instead of Aidan Power, alongside Liam McCormack. The opening sequence also changed to feature past guests such as The Blizzards, Lucy Kennedy and Ken Doherty in black and white. Among those to provide music were

Duke Special Duke Special (born Peter Wilson; 4 January 1971) is a songwriter and performer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A piano-based songwriter with a romantic style and a warm, distinctly accented voice, he was previously known for his distinctiv ...

, Messiah J and the Expert,

The Flaws The Flaws were an Irish indie-rock quartet, hailing from Carrickmacross in County Monaghan. The band released their self entitled debut EP in the Summer of 2005 which attracted a flurry of label attention and eventually culminated in the signin ...

Declan O'Rourke Declan O'Rourke (born April 26, 1976) is a singer-songwriter from Dublin, Ireland. Career Early career to 2010 At the age of 13, when living in Australia with his family, O'Rourke was given his first guitar by a priest in Kyabram who recog ...

Republic of Loose Republic of Loose were an Irish funk rock band from Dublin. Formed in 2001, the band formerly consisted of lead vocalist Mick Pyro, bass guitarist and vocalist Benjamin Loose, keyboardist Deco, guitarists and vocalists Dave Pyro and Brez and ...

East 17 East 17 are an English pop boy band started by Tony Mortimer, Brian Harvey, John Hendy, and Terry Coldwell in 1991. As of 2020, the group consists of Coldwell, Robbie Craig, and Joe Livermore. East 17 have undergone multiple lineup changes, wi ...

, Juno Falls,

David Geraghty David Geraghty (born 30 September 1975) is an Irish multi-instrumentalist, composer and songwriter. He is a founding member of Bell X1, and since 2014 has been performing under the moniker Join Me in the Pines. In 1994 he joined the group Ju ...

and

Seasick Steve Steven Gene Wold ( né Leach, 19 March 1951),/nowiki>freight_trains.html" ;"title="freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains">freight_trains.html" ;"title="/nowiki>freight trains">/nowiki>freight trains/nowiki> f ...

. ;''The Cafe Select'' Throughout June, July and into August 2008, RTÉ broadcast six special editions of ''The Cafe''. These included past interviews and performances.

Season five

For season five, Aidan Power's co-presenter Liam McCormack left for pastures new and wasn't replaced as Power became the show's sole presenter. The 7 November episode marked the beginning of Friday broadcasts, this change would remain in effect until the programme's end in 2010. Among those to provide music were

, Fight Like Apes,

and

. Olympian Kenny Egan produced his silver medal.2 October 2008
RTÉ. Retrieved 20 December 2008. Economist George Lee was shown predicting doom and gloom sixteen years earlier30 October 2008
RTÉ. Retrieved 20 December 2008.

featured on the night of ''

The Late Late Toy Show ''The Late Late Toy Show'' is an annual, special edition of the Irish chat show '' The Late Late Show''. Airing annually on RTÉ One near the end of November or early December to coincide with the holiday shopping season, the ''Toy Show'' showc ...

'' where he encountered the mimicry of

who took on the persona of Kenny and his predecessor Gay Byrne.28 November 2008
RTÉ. Retrieved 20 December 2008.

Ryle Nugent Ryle Nugent was born in Dublin and is an Irish sports broadcaster, reporter and former Head of RTÉ Sport. Prior to his appointment, he was RTÉ's commissioning editor for sport primarily specialising in rugby union. He is the resident rugby uni ...

guested on 20 March 2009 to talk about Ireland's attempt to win the

2009 Six Nations Championship The 2009 Six Nations Championship, known as the RBS 6 Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 10th Six Nations Championship, and the 115th international championship, an annual rugby union competition contested by the six major European national t ...

Grand Slam Grand Slam most often refers to: * Grand Slam (tennis), one player or pair winning all four major annual tournaments, or the tournaments themselves Grand Slam or Grand slam may also refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category te ...

. The final episode of the fifth series was broadcast on 27 March 2009, featuring guests

Eamon Dunphy Eamon Martin Dunphy (born 3 August 1945) is an Irish media personality, journalist, broadcaster, author, sports pundit and former professional footballer. He grew up playing football for several youth teams including Stella Maris. Since retirin ...

and

, with music from

and a new

Louis Walsh Michael Louis Vincent Walsh (born 5 August 1952) is an Irish music manager and television personality. He has managed Johnny Logan, Boyzone, Jedward and Westlife, four of Ireland's most successful pop acts in the 1990s and 2000s. He later be ...

girlband.

Season six

Keith Duffy appeared to promote the stage show ''My First Time''; this was cancelled after the sudden death of fellow

Boyzone Boyzone were an Irish boy band, created in 1993 by talent manager Louis Walsh. Before even recording any material, Boyzone made an appearance on RTÉ's '' The Late Late Show''. Their most successful line-up was composed of Keith Duffy, Steph ...

member

Stephen Gately Stephen Patrick David Gately (17 March 197610 October 2009) was an Irish singer, who, with Ronan Keating, was co-lead singer of the pop group Boyzone; all of Boyzone's studio albums during Gately's lifetime hit number one in the United Kingdo ...

the following day. Guests on the final episode, aired on 26 March 2010, were

Katie Taylor Katie Taylor (born 2 July 1986) is an Irish professional boxer and former footballer. She is a two-weight world champion and the current undisputed lightweight champion, having held the WBA title since 2017; the IBF title since 2018; and the ...

, Daithi O'Se,

Kathryn Thomas Kathryn Thomas (born 20 January 1979) is an Irish television presenter. Early life Thomas attended the national school on the Green Road, Carlow and began her secondary school years in St Leo's College, Carlow. In her second year, she transiti ...

, Andrew Stanley and

Dustin the Turkey Dustin the Turkey, a character performed by John Morrison is a former star of RTÉ television's '' The Den'' between 1989 and 2010 and from 2020. He has been described as "the most subversive comedy force on Irish television". A turkey-vulture ...

, with music from Smash Hits and

Beardyman Darren Alexander Foreman (born 14 May 1982), better known as Beardyman, is a British multivocalist, musician and comedian from London known for his beatboxing skills and use of live looping. Early life After studying at Queen Elizabeth's Gra ...

References

External links

''The Cafe''
at

RTÉ Television RTÉ Television is a department of Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), the Republic of Ireland's state controlled national broadcaster. Its first channel was Teilifís Éireann, which began broadcasting on 31 December 1961. Since the 1960s, RT ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cafe, The 2004 Irish television series debuts 2010 Irish television series endings Irish television talk shows RTÉ original programming