Derry Girls star Siobhán McSweeney addresses the possibility of reviving the acclaimed comedy. The teen sitcom, which focused on five teenagers living in the mid-1990s in Nothern Island while attending a fictional girls’ Catholic secondary school, ended its run in May 2022. But the show continues to earn praise, winning Best Scripted Comedy at this year’s 2023 British Academy Television Awards. McSweeney also won in the Best Female Comedy Performance category for her role as Sister Michael.
In comments shared with RadioTimes following her BAFTA TV win, McSweeney discussed the possibility of bringing back Derry Girls after its ending. In her quote, which is included below, the actor expresses a reluctance to revive the series and talks about how the characters were all left “in a really good place.” She also pushes back against revisiting Derry Girls just for the sake of it, pointing to the risks of that approach:
“If it was down to me, but it isn’t down to me at all. I also think that, you know, the thing that also makes shows great is knowing when to end them as well and not sort of ruining what was good about it by dragging it out for years and years and seasons and seasons. So I feel like we’ve left all the characters in a really good place – in a place of hope and a place of peace. And yeah, why not leave them there for the time being?”
McSweeney Is Right About Not Reviving Derry Girls
Though it streams on Netflix, which allowed the series to gain more international viewership, Derry Girls is originally a Channel 4 sitcom. It became the British channel’s most popular comedy since Father Ted in the 1990s. The series was embraced by its critics well into the final season, which was praised for its balancing a tone that was both sweet and caring of its ensemble while also being hilarious.
Helped by being available on Netflix, Derry Girls not only achieved a perfect final episode, but the show also increased its cultural footprint. An episode of The Simpsons season 33 includes a reference to “Dairy Girls Ice Cream.” Matt Selman, a writer on The Simpsons, later confirmed that it was a nod to the Channel 4 hit and added in a tweet that it was “the least we could do,” indicating the show’s impact.
In an era where just about anything with name recognition is brought back in the hopes of leaning into nostalgia, most reboots and revival attempts fail to make a strong impact. While it’s possible that there’s a version of Derry Girls that makes sense in the future, McSweeney’s protectiveness over the comedy and its reputation is hard to argue with.
Source: RadioTimes
