As an American, I feel I may be presumptuous, dare I say even brazen, to be writing this blog about a seemingly sacred Irish institution that is integral to the holiday heart of this country. No, I’m not talking about advent, not the Solstice, not midnight Mass. Ah, no. I’m talking about outrageous Christmas jumpers (that’s sweaters to the uninitiated), a cacophony of red and green. I’m talking about glitzy show numbers, one-liners to put Henny Youngman to shame, cute children running the show and running amok. I’m talking pathos and humor and tears and laughter. This, my friends from near and far, is The Late, Late Toy Show, a uniquely Irish television extravaganza and “the most magical night of the year when children are in charge.”

Imagine you are a young lad or colleen of 3 or 5 or 7 or even post-big guy, living on this small island. The anticipation of Santa is enough to do you in as it is. But for generations of Irish children, Christmas is not your only holiday hallmark. Ushering in the season every late November is another, special night just for you. On this night, your parents allow you to stay up to the shocking time of 11:30pm, while you watch children from across the country not only play with that year’s toys-du-jour and a panoply of others, but also see them sing, dance, cartwheel across the floor and smile smile smile – all for your benefit.

“It’s very hard to define” the importance of The Late Late Toy Show to Irish children, said my friend’s daughter Aimhirin. Now 37, when she was a child, there were only two television stations in Ireland, no television in the summer and limited shows even during the rest of the year. That played into part of it, she said. Television was a big deal. The show, which premiered in 1975, is also an offshoot of The Late Late Show, a talk show (that begins at 9:30pm, BTW) that she said is part of the fabric of Irish life. “In terms of spheres of influence, it’s been said the Taoiseach (prime minster) was the most important person in the country, and the next was the presenter of The Late Late Show,” she said.

The toy show, then, becomes “a celebration of Irish culture. It’s the kids singing and dancing, it’s their relationship with their school and their granny. The kids aren’t polished. There’s an innocence about it. It’s very authentically Irish,” said Aimhirin.

On that night, everyone in the family might be decked out in the same exact pair of pyjamas (that’s pajamas to the uninitiated), bought at Dunne’s Stores or Penny’s or even the grocery stores in sizes from big men to tiny babies. This is part of the sacred Irish institution – cuddling up in front of the TV looking like something out of a holiday advertisement. You can even buy a matching PJ for the dog!

From the moment the show begins, kids are surely ricocheting off the walls. There are very few adults on The Late Late Toy Show. It truly is a night of children. Aimhirin, whose birthday is Dec. 8, remembers she used to have sleepovers on the night of the show and they’d snuggle in in front of the television. “It was a key calendar milestone. Every child in the country was allowed to stay up. It was a given.” That sense of late-night, adrenalin-filled excitement is captured perfectly in a very clever television ad that aired in the weeks before this year’s show. Take a peek. The man seen at the end is the show’s host (and current Late, Late Show presenter) Ryan Tubridy.

One could argue, I suppose, that the show smacks of commercialism. After all, over the course of the night, children play with probably 100 or more toy or toy-related items for sale this season. But dig a little deeper. RTE, the Irish television station that airs The Late Late Toy Show, lists every item on its website for parent or Santa perusal, with links to where they can be bought. Not one link to Amazon can be found. Rather, they will lead to the websites of Irish toy stores, bookstores, craft and art shops. So, sure, commercialism at some level, but supporting the local economy of an island nation at a more primal and important level. Plus, really, Santa can sometimes use all the help he can get. But in this time of global shipping shenanigans, even Santa can be challenged, as Tubridy reminded parents this year. “Santa might not be able to get all these toys,” he said. “I talked to him the Wednesday before last. Supply lines, the Suez Canal. I know, I know. So just manage your expectations.”

But there is more at work here than merely this year’s hottest – or most Irish – toy. (I chuckled, for instance, when one rural lad played with a model cattle mart set.) The show highlights the talents of kids throughout the country. Applications to appear on The Late Late Toy Show are available in early September, and apparently child dancers, musicians, orators, singers and etc. etc. flock to get on the show. One preteen with a grin as big as the moon said after this year’s show that she’d been trying since she was 5, and was just chosen. There are break dancers, hip hop artists, rappers, Irish step dancers, ballerinas, instrumentalists, singers with the voice of angels and more, all in one 2-hour show.

“For me, it was never about wanting the toys. For me, it was showcasing all those different talents. And while it’s much more of a Hollywood production today than it was, the formula has stayed the same,” Aimhirin said. She even admitted she sent in an application when she was a child, but wasn’t successful. “I should frame that letter, if I can find it!”

Appearing on the show can also apparently be a ticket to the big time. This year, young DJ Calum Kieran of Dublin was a standout, playing his mix to a studio full of dancers. He’s already been inundated with offers from the country’s top DJs. That kind of “sprinkling magic,” as Tubridy calls it, is everywhere in evidence on the show. Even the most Scrooge-like adults can’t help but turn up their mouths, unbidden, into a smile. It is perhaps not surprising that a bit of tugging at heartstrings goes on, too. This year, a hearing-impaired girl who played the French horn, a boy who survived cancer, a smiling girl who is wheelchair-bound due to a rare disease were all on the show. They were all engaging youngsters, a reminder that we are not all evenly abled, that it is important to accept and respect everyone for their own unique gifts. Throw in a few celebrity adults – this year, Olympic boxing gold medal winner Kellie Harrington and singer/songwriter Ed Sheeran – and that about rounds out the evening. And here’s the rub. Across Ireland and the world that night and in the days to follow, people donated an astonishing €6.6 million ($7.4 million) to the Toy Show Appeal, which funds programming of all sorts for the nation’s children. “Ireland at its best, everybody,” said Tubridy that night. “Ireland at its best.”

One more thing before I end this paean to Irish childhood. This year’s show was watched by people in 150 countries. The Irish diaspora that began hundreds of years ago continues to this day. Modern emigrants don’t face the forced exodus of their forebears, but economics, a better life, more opportunity still drive the expat Irish community. I’ve rarely met a mother or father who doesn’t have at least one adult child in some far-flung corner of the world. For these folks, the Late Late Toy Show must be a talisman of sorts, a touchstone that allows them on at least one night of the year to be wholly Irish, wholly childlike, wholly sentimental. “I have friends in New Zealand and Australia, and they watch every year. It’s so uniquely Irish, it’s a time to dip in and connect with that uniqueness,” Aimhirin said. She, too, is an emigrant, a resident of London. She remembers once about 10 years ago, the London Irish Centre aired a live screening of the show. “Basically, every 20-something Irish person in London arrived and turned it into a nightclub for the evening. Some parents brought their kids, but I don’t think they got the memo!”

I do think that The Late, Late Toy Show could be an acquired taste for some folks like me, a blow-in from America, no less. It’s a bit over the top, but that’s the point. You tune in for the craic (the fun) of it. As I watched, I found myself wishing more than once that I had a cultural childhood grounding, or that I was watching with one or two kids. Aimhirin said her British husband “thinks it’s one of the more mental things he’s ever seen.” I get that. It’s pretty mental. But it’s uniquely mental – and so a mile marker for this immigrant, another indication that while I think I’ve learned so much, I have so much more to learn.

Tubridy said in a newspaper article after last year’s show, “Explaining The Late Late Toy Show to anyone who isn’t from Ireland is one of the most difficult jobs for an Irish citizen worth their salt. It’s like trying to explain why cheese and onion crisps are such an important part of the national conversation.”

Cheese and onion crisps? Sigh. Back to the drawing board…

***

If you want to see The Late, Late Toy Show for yourself, here is a link. I signed in on my United States VPN (virtual private network), and I was able to access it. I hope it works for you! At the least, watch the beginning. It’s pretty cool.

If you are still in the holiday mood, here are links to a couple of Irish Christmas television ads that caught my eye. The Guinness one was apparently made in 2011 and remains a crowd pleaser, for obvious reasons. The SuperValu ad is just heart-warming, and will bring a tear to your eye.

May you and yours have a wonderful holiday season. Nollaig shona, grainstad sona, athbhliain faoi mhaise duit – Merry Christmas, happy solstice, happy New Year from Ireland.