Conan O’Brien announces his return to television

After taking a hiatus Conan O’Brien has revealed when his late night show will return to TBS.

If you’ve had a feeling that something in your life has been missing, you’re not crazy. It just may be that you were going through Conan O’Brien withdrawals. It’s understandable considering O’Brien has been off for three months. And when you’ve been on television for 26 years, even a brief absence gets noticed.

It was three months ago that O’Brien announced a hiatus for Conan. When it returned, it would have a new 30-minute format. This would mean no more Basic Cable Band or musical guests as O’Brien and the rest of Team Coco looked to re-imagine a late night format that had become stale in their eyes.

That doesn’t mean that O’Brien hasn’t been keeping busy. Quite the opposite, actually. He recently wrapped up a sold-out nationwide comedy tour with some of his favorite comics. Then there is Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, his top-rated podcast that has featured huge names like Will Ferrell, Kristen Bell, and Bill Burr. As if that wasn’t enough, O’Brien’s latest travel special filmed in Japan aired on TBS.

All that is fine and good and was enthusiastically welcomed by Conan O’Brien’s fans. But his fans also know that O’Brien’s real home is on television. There is a reason he is the longest-tenured host in late night. 

Fans of Conan now know how long they will have to wait to see O’Brien back on their screens every night. It was announced today that Conan will return to TBS on Jan. 22, 2019 for the show’s ninth season. The show will air weeknights at 11:00 PM ET.

It will be an exciting time when Conan returns in January. Not only because O’Brien is one of the most popular people in late night or because his brand of comedy is unlike anyone else, but also to see how the new format translates. Not since Conan debuted on TBS in the aftermath of the Tonight Show circus has there been so much anticipation around what O’Brien will bring to late night television.