The first episode was excellent.
While the majority of great comedy shows are heavily influenced by the area in which they're set - Peckham (Only Fools and Horses), Slough (The Office), Craggy Island (Father Ted) and the boring school life in suburban England (The Inbetweeners) being fine examples -what elevates the best comedies is their universal appeal.
For example, anyone that went to school will definitely know someone that's like Neil, Jay, Simon, and Will but after meeting the
Derry Girls, you'll already feel like you know them.
Of course, having a knowledge about Irish culture makes the show a little bit more accessible, but just like any other good comedy, it's not essential.
Hell, you didn't need to be an Irish priest to find Father Ted hilarious!
Derry Girls follows 16-year-old Erin Quinn (played by Saoirse Monica Jackson) as she comes of age during the later years of the Troubles. Driven up the wall by her life in secondary school, an uncompromisingly tough mother (Tara Lynne O'Neill) and long-suffering father (Tommy Tiernan), the pains of growing up are made no easier by the constant sight of armed police roaming the streets and British Army checkpoints on every road.
Just like The Inbetweeners, all the girls here bring something different to their gang. Erin is the moody, overly-thinking and self-righteous one. Orla is madder than a bag of spiders, Clare always panics and Michelle can't go two seconds without cursing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFmFuXH0IRY
Written by Lisa McGee (Indian Summers, London Irish), and based on her own experiences of growing up in Derry, Derry Girls plays off The Inbetweeners feel of frustrated and misbehaving teens, but adds a strong dose of Catholic humour.
The show takes place in 1994, just after Pulp Fiction has just landed in Irish cinemas and it's brimming with gags, bad language, pop-culture references and surreal set pieces.
We loved the gag about Kumal - "the wee Ethiopian fella from Ballybofey.'
The first episode aired last night and plenty of people were instantly comparing it to The Inbetweeners.
Derry Girls returns to our screens on Channel 4 next Thursday night at 10pm but if you missed the first episode,
you can watch it here.
https://twitter.com/willleahy/status/949193897108008960
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https://twitter.com/larrson39/status/949070185201270784
