PAT KENNY WILL be joining UTV Ireland, the channel announced today.

The veteran anchor will be presenting a new show, which is due to air in early 2015. He said the months ahead will be “exhilarating”.

Kenny left his RTÉ commitments last year, and joined Newstalk radio in a blaze of publicity. However, until now he had not taken on any significant TV work.

He said today that he was “very excited” by the move and “really looking forward” to returning to TV. Kenny added however that it was “early days” in terms of the details of the show.

He said:

During the next few months we’ll take what is effectively a blank canvas with some initial strands and shape it to create the best television possible.

Here he is announcing his new work with UTV at a press launch today:

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John McCann, UTV’s group chief executive, said:

Pat is one of the most respected and experienced presenters in Ireland. His style of interviewing is unique, insightful and often challenging. These are all qualities that fit with the style of broadcasting that UTV Ireland aims to bring to the market and we are delighted that Pat will be part of the channel from the beginning.

At the launch in Dublin’s Marker Hotel, UTV announced a new daily early-evening news show called Ireland Live. It said this would be:

a 30-minute round-up of all the day’s news from both home and abroad with a sports focus on Fridays.

In a late weekday evening slot, Ireland Live at 10 is slated to be an hour-long news and current affairs show “with debate and expert reaction on topical issues.”

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The channel also confirmed that it would show a raft of UK imports, some of which are currently aired on TV3.

They include The Graham Norton Show, Jonathan Ross, Ant & Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway, and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here.

Other domestic Irish content currently on the schedule includes:

• Rare Breed – a portrait of a year in the lives of 22 Irish farming families
• Paul and Nick – billed as “A Scotsman and an Irishman, best friends and chefs cooking up a storm on the high seas, state side.” (No, we’re not sure what that means either.)
• Lesser Spotted Journeys – Joe Mahon, the current presenter of Lesser Spotted Ulster, takes his travel show nationwide.

UTV Ireland: No, we’re NOT combining Tallafornia and Geordie Shore for a super-reality-show>

More: Where will Ireland’s new TV station be located?>