Oscars presenter Conan O'Brien among many in US reflecting on Irish-American identity

The Irish diaspora in the US is getting older and is mingling in new traditions with the old, writes Sean Murray in Boston

People during the St Patrick’s Day Parade in Philadelphia. Picture: Niall Carson/PA

Ahead of hosting the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, host Conan O’Brien gave an impassioned account of his sense of Irishness and the immigrant experience in a chat with Jimmy Kimmel last week.

He described visiting the site of his great-grandfather's former home on a recent trip to Ireland, and the emotion it stirred within him.