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The Meaning of Life (TV series)

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The Meaning of Life
Also known asThe Meaning of Life with Gay Byrne
GenreInterview
StarringGay Byrne
Country of origin
Ireland
Original language
English
No. of series12
No. of episodes50
Original release
NetworkRTÉ One
Release19 April 2009 (2009-04-19) –
16 October 2016 (2016-10-16)

The Meaning of Life is an Irish television programme, broadcast on RTÉ One. Presented by Gay Byrne, each edition involves the veteran broadcaster interviewing a prominent public figure.[1]

Interviews with former Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and actors Gabriel Byrne and Brenda Fricker during the second series attracted media attention. Ahern spoke of his religious habits, Byrne and Fricker of being sexually abused as children.

Joe Duffy took over as host from Gay Byrne in 2020.[2]

Episode list

Series 1

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
119 April 2009 (2009-04-19)Colin Farrell
The actor spoke of topics such as his father and his addictions.[1]
226 April 2009 (2009-04-26)Gerry Adams
The Sinn Féin leader spoke of the process of concluding resentment, indignation or anger as a result of a perceived offence, difference or mistake, and ceasing to demand punishment or restitution, the great unknown, Final Judgment and how his beliefs have affected his life as a republican.[1] Byrne said this meeting with Adams had lacked any confrontation but described it as "an interview where you certainly had to think on your feet".[3]
33 May 2009 (2009-05-03)Maeve Binchy
The writer spoke of losing her beliefs as a Roman Catholic during a journey to Jerusalem as a young adult, describing it as "the Road to Damascus experience in reverse".[1]
410 May 2009 (2009-05-10)Ronan Keating
The singer was described by Byrne as "a revelation" after the episode.[1] Keating spoke of his disagreements with his manager Louis Walsh, the death of his mother from cancer and the Marie Keating Foundation which resulted.[1][3]
517 May 2009 (2009-05-17)Sinéad O'Connor
The musician spoke of her views about the deity of her belief system and how this affects her artistic output.[1] She later said she an Byrne had had "a lovely morning together".[4] The interview was filmed in January 2009 at O'Connor's house.[4] Byrne referenced the interview in an article he wrote for the Sunday Independent later that day.[5]
624 May 2009 (2009-05-24)Neil Jordan
The writer and filmmaker immediately denied being religious, but indicated spiritual beliefs when he stated his view that life continues after the permanent termination of the biological functions that define a living organism.[1] Jordan recalled his father telling him he would return after death and their subsequent post-death encounter during a stormy fixed-wing aircraft flight.[1]

Series 2

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
717 January 2010 (2010-01-17)Gabriel Byrne
The actor spoke for the first time about sexual abuse he had received from the Christian Brothers when he was a boy and also said he had left the priesthood after he "walked up the stairs behind two girls in miniskirts" while on a bus in London.[6][7]
824 January 2010 (2010-01-24)Tommy Tiernan
931 January 2010 (2010-01-31)Brenda Fricker
The actress spoke about being beaten by her mother and sexually abused by a friend.[8]
107 February 2010 (2010-02-07)Bertie Ahern
The former Taoiseach confessed he had not confessed in the past 40 years but often went to Mass and spoke of the intimacy he shared with Ian Paisley over their religion while in London in 2004.[9]
1114 February 2010 (2010-02-14)Mary Robinson
1221 February 2010 (2010-02-21)Edna O'Brien[10]

Series 3

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
1326 September 2010 (2010-09-26)Terry Wogan
The BBC broadcaster discussed his atheism.[11][12][13]
143 October 2010 (2010-10-03)Fionnula Flanagan[14]
1510 October 2010 (2010-10-10)Deepak Chopra[15]
1617 October 2010 (2010-10-17)Ian Paisley[16]
17TBAMícheál Ó Muircheartaigh
18TBADana Rosemary Scallon

Series 4

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
19TBAMichael Parkinson
20TBABrendan O'Carroll
21TBAMark Patrick Hederman
22TBABrian Cody
23TBAMartin Sheen
The actor spoke of his pro-life views and said his wife was conceived through a rape and he says had her mother aborted her, or dumped her in the Ohio River as she had considered, his wife would not exist. He also talked about three of his grandchildren who were conceived out of wedlock, saying his sons "were not happy at the time but they came to love these children. We have three grown grandchildren, two of them are married, they're some of the greatest source of joy in our lives."[17]
24TBABen Dunne

Series 5

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
258 January 2012 (2012-01-08)Andrea Corr
2615 January 2012 (2012-01-15)Paddy Moloney
2722 January 2012 (2012-01-22)Shay Cullen
2829 January 2012 (2012-01-29)Richard Branson
295 February 2012 (2012-02-05)Bob Geldof
30TBAMary Byrne

Series 6

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
319 October 2012 (2012-10-09)Mary McAleese
The former President of Ireland spoke about same-sex marriage.[18]
3214 October 2012 (2012-10-14)Noel Gallagher
3322 January 2012 (2012-01-22)Seán Gallagher
The businessman gave his first televised interview since his presidential failure.
3428 October 2012 (2012-10-28)Niall Quinn

Series 7

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
356 January 2013 (2013-01-06)Colm Tóibín
3612 January 2013 (2013-01-12)J. P. Donleavy
3720 January 2013 (2013-01-20)John Lonergan
Former governor of Mountjoy Prison
3827 January 2013 (2013-01-27)Maureen Gaffney
UCD Clinical Psychologist
393 February 2013 (2013-02-03)Maria Doyle Kennedy

Bono special episode

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
4025 June 2013 (2013-06-25)Bono
The musician talked about his humanitarian work, his religious faith, and also his parents' marriage and father's death.

Series 8

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
416 October 2013 (2013-10-06)Colm Wilkinson
The musical star spoke of his absence of faith.[19]
42TBAEmily O'Reilly[20]
43TBAPeter McVerry[21]
44TBACeline Byrne[22]

Series 9

The ninth series began airing on 4 May 2014.

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
454 May 2014 (2014-05-04)Majella O'Donnell
Interview with the cancer sufferer.[23]
46TBARory O'Neill
Interview with the man behind the make-up.[24]
47TBASean O'Sullivan
Interview with the ex-Dragons' Den star.[25]
48TBAEamon Dunphy
Interview with the soccer man.[26]
49TBADavid Puttnam
Interview with the film producer and British Lord.[27]
50TBAEnda Kenny
Interview with the man behind the make-up.[28]

Series 10

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
51TBACecila Ahern
Interview about growing up with Bertie Aherne.[29]
52TBAStephen Fry
Actor, Comedian, Writer, and Humanist.[29]
53TBABarry McGuigan
Boxer talks about his Catholic faith.[29]
54TBAMary Black
Talks about her disillusion with the Church, her struggles with depression and her mystical experiences.[29]
55TBARowan Williams
Former Archbishop of Canterbury and now Master of Magdalene College, Cambridge.[29]

Series 11

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
56TBAHozier
Singer.[29]
57TBAJoan Burton
Tánaiste talks about adoption, her early influences, politics and morality.[29]
58TBARichard Dawkins
Evolutionary biologist.[29]
59TBAStanislaus Kennedy
Nun.[29]
60TBAEckhart Tolle
Author.[29]

Series 12

No.Original release dateGuest(s)
61TBARuby Wax
Comedienne.[29]
62TBADolores Keane
Singer who shares her fight against alcoholism, breast cancer and depression.[29]
63TBAJohn Sheahan
Former member of The Dubliners.[29]
64TBAGarry Hynes
Theatre director and founder of Druid Theatre Company.[29]

Reception

Gay Byrne is the presenter.

John Boland of the Irish Independent claimed the series became "more religious in thrust and tone as it progressed".[30] He described the episode featuring Neil Jordan as a "bizarre encounter", in which the writer and filmmaker "grew more and more bemused" as Byrne questioned him in great detail about his religious faith.[30] Jordan answered such questions as "Do you think your religion might return to you on your deathbed?" and "Do you think there's a day of reckoning?" with "I really haven't got a clue" and "I don't know, Gay" but when he commented that "every time I'm in a plane and it's hit by lightning I bless myself", Byrne replied "Hah!", as if, according to Boland, Jordan had "just revealed a basic faith in the Catholic Almighty rather than a reflex reaction to imminent catastrophe".[30]

The Irish Times's Kevin Courtney said of The Meaning of Life: "The title is a bit grandiose – you could just as easily call it Tell Uncle Gaybo All About It.[31]

Byrne prefers not to discuss his own faith:

I am not going to say, because it would compromise me in terms of the show if people knew I had a position. What you find is that they are all searching. No one has the truth.[32]

Viewing figures

An average of 247,000 viewers tuned into the first four episodes of the series, featuring interviews with Farrell, Adams, Binchy and Keating.[3] The episode featuring Keating attracted the most viewers, with a total of 258,000 reported.[3] Next was the Adams interview, with 251,000 viewers.[3] This was followed by the interview with Binchy which had 231,000 viewers.[3]

References

  1. "About the show". RTÉ. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  2. "Joe Duffy to take over Gay Byrne's series, The Meaning of Life". VIP Magazine. Retrieved 1 November 2023.
  3. "Gaybo shows why he's still pulling in the viewers". Evening Herald. Independent News & Media. 14 May 2009. Archived from the original on 19 May 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  4. "Sinead reveals X Factor fantasy". Evening Herald. Independent News & Media. 16 May 2009. Archived from the original on 18 May 2009. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  5. "A caller said "I know for a fact that he had his hand up her skirt for the whole interview." And I thought, dammit, they miss nothing..." Sunday Independent. Independent News & Media. 25 January 2009. Retrieved 19 June 2009.
  6. McDonald, Henry (19 January 2010). "Gabriel Byrne tells of childhood sexual abuse". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2010.
  7. "Gabriel Byrne: I was abused as a child". The Daily Telegraph. London. 20 January 2010. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 12 February 2010.
  8. Byrne, Andrea (31 January 2010). "Fricker reveals a childhood of abuse". Sunday Independent. Independent News & Media. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
  9. McGreevy, Ronan (8 February 2010). "Ahern reveals deep religious conviction and hope of heaven". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 14 February 2010.
  10. Dubliner's Diary (9 February 2010). "Dunphy goes on a Haunted date night". Evening Herald. Independent News & Media. Retrieved 2 June 2026. Gay interviewed Edna O'Brien for his current RTÉ series, The Meaning of Life. "Edna will appear on the series in the next few weeks, so naturally I had to be here to offer my support. "He's on it the week after Mary Robinson and I must say I really enjoyed our conversation," said Gay.
  11. "Wogan joins Byrne on Meaning of Life". RTÉ Ten. Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 25 September 2010. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  12. Hurley, David (25 September 2010). "Limerick's Terry Wogan gives Gay Byrne his thoughts on the meaning of life". Limerick Post. Retrieved 25 September 2010.
  13. "Terry Wogan tells of anguish over death of baby girl". The Belfast Telegraph. Independent News & Media. 27 September 2010. Retrieved 27 September 2010.
  14. O'Brien, James (4 October 2010). "Fionnula Flanagan reveals she returned to God when granddaughter disappeared". Irish Central. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 4 October 2010.
  15. "Upfront". The Irish Times. 10 October 2010. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
  16. "The Red Hand of Paisley". Belfast Telegraph. 17 October 2010. Retrieved 17 October 2010.
  17. Hayes, Cathy (17 April 2011). "Martin Sheen opens up about his strong anti-abortion views". IrishCentral. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2011.
  18. "Former president Mary McAleese 'not troubled' by gay marriage". RTÉ News. 9 October 2012. Archived from the original on 3 March 2015. Retrieved 9 October 2012.
  19. "Series 8 Programme 2". RTÉ. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  20. "Series 8 Programme2". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  21. "Series 8 Programme 3". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  22. "Series 8 Programme 4". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  23. "Series 9 Programme 1". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  24. "Series 9 Programme 2". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  25. "Series 9 Programme 3". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  26. "Series 9 Programme 4". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  27. "Series 9 Programme 5". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  28. "Series 9 Programme 6". RTÉ. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  29. "List of programmes". RTÉ. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  30. Boland, John (30 May 2009). "A funny comedian? Don't make me laugh". Irish Independent. Independent News & Media. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
  31. Courtney, Kevin (23 January 2010). "In God, we curry flavour". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. Retrieved 14 February 2010.
  32. Byrne, Gay (13 February 2010). "The chameleon of Montrose". The Irish Times. Irish Times Trust. Archived from the original on 18 November 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2010.