is officially back, with the first episode of season 3 leaving viewers with their jaws on the floor.
Fans were delighted to see the cast members return for one more outing of the Channel 4 series, as Erin (Saoirse-Monica Jackson), Clare (), Michelle (Jamie-Lee O’Donnell), James (Dylan Llewellyn) and Orla (Louisa Harland) find themselves in trouble right off the bat.
The show continues to blend humour with poignant real-life events, as the group stressfully await the results of their GCSE exams at school in the premiere while political tension remains prevalent in their lives.
What year is Derry Girls set?
Derry Girls is set in the mid-1990s against the backdrop of The Troubles, following a group of friends growing up in Derry, Northern Ireland amid the ongoing conflict.
The show is partly based on the experiences of its creator, Lisa McGee, who was a teenager in Derry in the 90s and attended Thornhill College, the inspiration for the fictional Our Lady Immaculate College.
While fans will undoubtedly be devastated when the show draws to a close with season three, Nicola recently shared that it was always the creator’s intention to take it as far as the Good Friday Agreement.
The Good Friday Agreement, also known as the Belfast Agreement, took place on April 10 1998, as an agreement was made on how Northern Ireland would be governed moving forward.
‘Lisa has always said publicly that she wanted to bring it up to the Good Friday agreement, so we knew that was going to be the endpoint. And I think even in series one we kind of felt like three series was probably the right amount,’ Nicola told .
The series has previously included references and scenes corresponding to historical events from the 90s, including the US President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton’s visit to Northern Ireland in 1995.
Where is the series filmed?
The majority of the show is filmed in Derry, including the scene where the group walked down the road to school and when they visited Deniss’s Wee Shop.
Some scenes are also shot in Belfast, such as when they go to the local fish and chip shop for takeaway, and shots depicting their school.
Jamie-Lee expressed how much it meant to her to film in Derry, having been born in the city, saying that it’s ‘overwhelming’ and something that she’s ‘incredibly, incredibly proud of’ to go home and witness how much it means to people.
‘The further away I get from finishing it, the more I can look back with sheer delight that we went for it. We made all the decisions that we made and we just went for the characters and didn’t hold back from the Derry-isms and the Derry-ness,’ she said.
‘I hope we represented it well and did Derry proud because the people from that town deserve it.’
What time is Derry Girls on?
Derry Girls is set to return next Tuesday at 9.15pm on Channel 4.
New episodes will be released on a weekly basis and will also be available to stream on All 4 to catch up on demand.
