Ireland episode of Conan O’Brien’s travel show wins Emmy

Conan O’Brien, Irish-American television host, writer, producer, and comedian, has won an Emmy for an episode of his show Conan O’Brien Must Go, in which he travels to Ireland and makes an appearance in Ros na Rún.

The episode won the award for Outstanding Writing for a Nonfiction Program. It also received a nomination for Outstanding Hosted Nonfiction Series or Special.

O’Brien, with Irish heritage from Limerick and Tipperary, arrived in the Connemara Gaeltacht in January with his HBO Max production team. Conan met the team and was presented with a tour of the Ros na Rún TV set, where he later took on the brief role as a delivery man in the show.

Marion Ní Loingsigh, the producer of Ros na Rún, said that it was “thrilling” to receive the request from O’Brien’s team.

“Who better to pair the famous US TV personality and comedian with than our very own leading legend Tadhg O’Direán, played by Macdara O Fatharta?”

O’Brien, now a member of the show’s celebrity cameo hall of fame, described the role as a “delightful highlight” to his trip to Ireland.

In preparation to step into his role, O’Brien worked with a linguistics coach. He said: “I apologise in advance for inadvertently butchering my Mother Tongue.”

Elsewhere in the episode, Conan visited Barack Obama Plaza in Tipperary, where he unveiled the ‘Conan O’Brien Air Pump’. He also searched for U2’s Bono, and went on a trip around Ireland’s capital.

Throughout his travels, he met a genealogist who helped him to trace his ancestry. This took him to Galbally, Co Limerick, from where his great grandfather Thomas O’Brien emigrated to the USA in the 1870s.