Not yet a fortnight after the baffling TV interview that saw IDA chief executive Martin Shanahan have to field questions about why Ireland uses the euro, and not the pound, came to light, anther cringe inducing clip in a similar fashion has been uncovered. In a moment that is both uncomfortable and confusing an American radio host asks Niall Gibbons, chief executive of Tourism Ireland:

“I don’t want to put you on the spot here, Niall, but I want to find out; there’s no plans of Ireland deciding to leave the UK, is there?”

Gibbons, who was on the show with Minister for Tourism Paschal Donohoe, responded with a generous laugh and said it was “an interesting question” before moving on to discuss Ireland as a tourist destination.

“An interesting question,” Gibbons said to co-host Mike Horn. “Well Ireland is as destination in itself and what we’re encouraging people to do is to jump into Ireland. It is very much a standalone destination,” he added.

Listen below to the clip of the 'Ireland in the UK' question

There was foreshadowing of potential embarrassment right from the start in the interview - which The Irish Times uncovered today  - on nationwide show ‘What’s Cookin’?’, on CRN Talk Radio. Co-host Paul Stern opened the segment with his best mock Irish accent, followed by Horn saying “begorrah to ya” to Stern.

It is worth noting that Tourism Ireland is an all-island body, working to market both sides of the border. Gibbins was on the air to sell both Belfast and Dublin, so to speak, so his answer was presumably the best way of avoiding getting bogged down in an explanation of not only Irish history and borders, but also the strange status of "areas of co-operation" bodies, such as Tourism Ireland, in a post Good Friday Ireland.

Or here to the full 8 minute interview, (including the opening “Begorrah!”)