Conan O’Brien tells Ryan Tubridy about his ‘unusual’ Irish roots and ‘fantastic’ career highlights

Virgin Radio

5 Jan 2024, 16:01

Conan O’Brien opened up about his family history while phoning in to Ryan Tubridy’s new Virgin Radio show this Friday (5th January).

Speaking with the Irish radio host, the American comedian, former late-night talk show host and podcaster shared that he’d recently received some interesting news about his genealogy.

After sending a blood sample off to his doctor to find out more about his ancestry, the results surprised the pair of them. “He said ‘This is quite unusual. You are 100% Irish.’ And I thought that was a compliment - that you scored high on a test,” Conan said.

“So I said ‘Thank you very much… do I get a prize? Is this a good thing?’ and he said ‘You idiot, it means you’re inbred!’... My people left Ireland, we moved to Massachusetts, we moved to one town in central Massachusetts, and then married each other for about 150 years,” he continued light-heartedly.

The television host who used to write for The Simpsons and Saturday Night Live then added: “Listen, I wouldn’t change anything… we are who we are… [but] it does answer a lot of questions as to why I chose this profession, or why this profession chose me. Because there are crossed wires left and right, and so I’m glad that comedy exists!”

Conan was calling Ryan and his listeners from Dublin, where he is currently filming for his new travel show, Conan O’Brien Must Go. The two former late-night hosts also discussed their similar career experiences during their chat, with Ryan admitting he is a “great admirer” of the American star.

“I really enjoyed the late night show,” Conan recalled, “But, I would say the trick is that you have to do tight turns - and you know this yourself… you can be talking to greats [e.g.] - Anthony Hopkins, and someone’s in your peripheral vision, waving at you to wrap it up.”

After 30 years of dealing with this problem which comes from filming a live talk show, Conan shared he is delighted to have now started working on podcasts, a “fantastic” format which allows him to “go down rabbit holes” with talent that just wouldn’t be possible if he was talking to them on TV.

“I went to the White House and talked with President Biden about being Irish, and we had a really lovely chat and then he showed me the Oval Office, and that wouldn’t have been possible on a late night show. We couldn’t have had that kind of conversation… it’s very freeing,” he explained.

Conan O’Brien’s podcast Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend is available wherever you get your podcasts.

Listen to Ryan Tubridy on Virgin Radio Monday to Friday from 10am-1pm, and catch up on-demand here.