The Late Late Show season 48

[1] It was the first series to be hosted by Ryan Tubridy, the show's fourth permanent hosta following the resignation of Pat Kenny live on air the previous season.

Local guests this season included Taoiseach Brian Cowen, his predecessor Bertie Ahern, hurler Donal Óg Cusack and actress Saoirse Ronan.

Musical guests this season included Dionne Warwick, David Gray, Crowded House, Paloma Faith, Plan B, Alexander Rybak, Nik Kershaw and Michael Bublé.

International guests interviewed this season included Jermaine Jackson, John Hurt, Ant & Dec, Russell Brand, Ricki Lake, Cilla Black, Joan Collins, Cherie Blair and the Hollywood actors Vince Vaughn, Stephen Baldwin, Colin Farrell, Samuel L. Jackson and Benicio del Toro.

[12] Terry Prone later commented in the Evening Herald that "the updated signature tune sounded as if someone who had heard the original once was trying to remember it through a hangover".

[15] Bookmakers began to offer bets for the identity of Tubridy's first guest, with actor Denzel Washington being reported as one of the favourites.

[16] Irish Independent television critic John Boland offered Tubridy some tips on being a good chat show host; these included a ban on C-list celebrities, a sense of humour and plenty of surprises.

[22] Gray is popular with that age group in Ireland and his 1998 album, White Ladder, broke Irish sales records.

[25][26] Tubridy quickly apologised to the Taoiseach on air after asking him about his alcoholic habits,[21] and later responded to the Independent's suggestions of a "mugging" by issuing a denial to the newspaper.

[27] He also asked Cowen if he "envied" the timing of his predecessor Bertie Ahern who departed the scene shortly before the economic collapse.

[29] Keith Duffy of Boyzone later called McFadden "naïve" to have done the interview and said Tubridy was correct to have asked him why there was such a distance between him and his daughters.

[31] Anna Carey wrote a heavily critical piece on the interview in the Irish Independent the following Saturday, calling McFadden a "selfish grown-up brat" who thought he was "an innocent victim" to Katona's "mad villain" despite Katona suffering from bipolar disorder and having "a pretty appalling childhood herself".

[39] Jackson told how his recently deceased brother Michael loved Ireland, particularly County Cork where he lived for a time in 2006.

[38] The episode, which also featured guests Kelly Osbourne, the Kilkenny All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship winning team, Moving Hearts and Michael Murphy, attracted 1.5 million viewers.

[40] The fourth episode of the season included an interview with Tony Sutherland, father of boxing Olympian Darren, who had died suddenly at his London home the previous week.

Tony Sutherland appeared on the show to confirm his belief that his son was not depressed at the time of his death and said he heard of Darren's demise when his wife was informed as they were communicating via telephone.

[41] The fifth episode of the season, which aired on 2 October 2009, featured an interview with Leonie Fennell and Tony Donnelly, the mother and stepfather of Shane Clancy, a 22-year-old student involved in a murder-suicide in Bray, County Wicklow on 16 August 2009.

[43] Father Fergus O'Donoghue, an associate of the Creane family whose son was murdered, later criticised the interview, saying they had been "exploited" and questioning why anti-depressants were used as an excuse.

[49] That episode also featured singer Peter Andre who performed "Unconditional", a song dedicated to his stepson Harvey, and Bláthnaid Ní Chofaigh who talked about her twisted bowel.

The jury consisted of Linda Martin, Mark Crossingham, Julian Benson, Larry Gogan and Diarmuid Furlong.

[60] Presenter Ryan Tubridy was joined by a selection of guests including the show's former hosts Gay Byrne and Pat Kenny, as well as other RTÉ broadcasters such as Joe Duffy, Dave Fanning, Brenda Donohue and David Blake Knox.