''Charity You're a Star'' (initially known as ''You're a Star Charity Special'') is a talent contest created by

Raidió Teilifís Éireann Raidi (; ; also written Ragdi; born August, 1938) is a Tibetan politician of the People's Republic of China. He served as a vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress from 2003 to 2008, and the highest ranking Tibeta ...

(RTÉ), in which various Irish celebrities sang to raise money for the charity of their choice. The show was aired live from Dublin City University's theatre, The Helix. The first season was named ''You're a Star Charity Special'', which was conceived to be a variation of parent programme ''

You're a Star ''You're a Star'' is an Irish music competition series broadcast by RTÉ One from 2002 to 2008. Produced by the broadcaster and Screentime ShinAwiL, the series was similar to formats such as ''Idol'' and ''The X Factor''. For its first three se ...

''. However it was much more successful that originally thought, so later seasons were called ''Charity You're a Star'' to imply more independence and permanence.

''You're a Star Charity Special''

On Tuesday 2 August 2005 (at 21.30

IST Ist or IST may refer to: Information Science and Technology * Bachelor's or Master's degree in Information Science and Technology * Graduate School / Faculty of Information Science and Technology, Hokkaido University, Japan * Graduate School ...

), the ''You're a Star Charity Special'' made its debut. The special contained eight Irish celebrity contestants who were coached by Twink, the Irish pantomime star. The judging panel consisted of Louis Walsh,

Linda Martin Linda Martin (born 27 March 1952) is an Irish singer and television presenter. She is best known as the winner of the 1992 Eurovision Song Contest during which she represented Ireland with the song " Why Me?". She is also known within Irelan ...

and '' Sunday Independent'' columnist Brendan O'Connor. The special was presented for two weeks by Derek Mooney (then recognisable from

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...

's '' Winning Streak'').

Contestants

On the night of the final (14 August 2005), David Mitchell defeated Finian McGrath via the Irish public vote and won the contest. ;External links
Official website
*

''Charity You're a Star'', second season

Due to the success of season one RTÉ and the producers (

Screentime ShinAwiL Shinawil (stylised as ShinAwiL) Productions is an Irish television production company. It was founded by producer Larry Bass and director Simon Gibney in 1999. It was acquired by Screentime (branded as Screentime ShinAwiL) as part of a deal to p ...

) brought the show back for a second season. There was no change to the judges, presenters or coach. However, unlike the first season, there were ten acts and ten live episodes. Episodes ran from Saturday 29 July until Sunday 13 August 2006. Each night one celebrity is eliminated via receiving the fewest votes from the public.

Contestants

The final was held on 13 August 2006. The remaining two celebrities were Áine Ní Dhroighneáin and John Aldridge. John defeated Áine. This is the second time in a row that the person representing Temple Street Children's Hospital won the competition.

''Charity You're a Star'', third season

The 2007 season saw a change in personnel:

Brian Ormond Brian Ormond (born 8 August 1979) is an Irish television presenter, businessman and reality TV star. Early career ''Popstars'' In 2001 Ormond auditioned for the Irish version of ''Popstars (Irish TV series), Popstars,'' the television programme w ...

hosted, while the judges were Brendan O'Connor,

Amanda Brunker Amanda Brunker (born 12 June 1974) is a novelist, journalist and columnist for the Irish '' Sunday World'' tabloid newspaper, and former Miss Ireland. After attending Mount Temple Comprehensive School she turned to modelling, entering and winnin ...

and

Bryan McFadden Brian Nicholas McFadden (born 12 April 1980) is an Irish pop singer and television presenter who rose to fame in 1998 as a member of the Irish boy band Westlife. Following his departure from the group in 2004, McFadden released his debut solo ...

. The final was held on 12 August 2007. The remaining two celebrities acts were Seán Bán Breathnach and The All Stars. The All Stars were the winners, performing "You Can Leave Your Hat On". The programme raised a record total of €384,520 for the ten Irish charities during its run.

External links

Official website

Petition to get Linda Martin back on ''You're a Star''

{{You're a Star 2005 Irish television series debuts 2005 Irish television series endings 2006 Irish television series debuts 2006 Irish television series endings 2007 Irish television series debuts 2007 Irish television series endings Irish talent shows Irish variety television shows Singing talent shows You're a Star