We got the gist - they ran out of spuds. Everyone was raging.

Continuing my trip down The Guardian's Top 50 TV Shows of 2022.  

#9 : Derry Girls

Lisa McGee’s magnificent coming-of-age comedy picked up endorsements from heavy-hitters including Matt Groening and Martin Scorsese and boasted cameos from Liam Neeson and Chelsea Clinton. But success didn’t go to Derry Girls’ head: the final season was every bit as pointed, poignant and hilarious as ever. With GCSEs and romantic confusion assuming equal significance to the looming Good Friday Agreement, the show once again movingly illustrated that the personal and the political are inseparable: they dovetail within individual lives and wider communities alike. The great sitcoms manage to combine humour with real emotional heft – and by the end, Derry Girls could hold its own with the very best of them.

Wow - I thought I'd already done this.  Turns out the last series was in 2019 and I only started doing the telly best ofs last year, so there's no way it could have happened - but I was sure I had.  Anyways, before we get to it I need to explain why I've jumped from #6 to #9 - and it involves a subtle change in the rules, so pay attention!

#7 is one I am going to watch, but somewhat incredibly to catch up I'm going to have to watch NINE seasons which involves 95 episodes, so this isn't going to happen any time soon - you can expect that write-up some time in the middle of 2024, I suspect.  And #8 is one I wouldn't mind watching, although I'm not massively fussed on it - but I've taken a look at the full list and there's just too much on there to guarantee I'm going to get through everything I actually want to watch this year (even allowing for #7 not fully happening).  So I'm going to relegate it to a second tier - if there's time at the end of the year then it might get a chance (but I suggest it doesn't hold its breath).

Right, now we've got that sorted out we can get back to Derry Girls.  But I don't really need to tell you about it, do I?  Because surely you've already watched it?  You haven't?!?  Shame on you!  It's a funny, warm program that takes itself seriously but yet, at the same time, doesn't - it accepts that life in Northern Ireland at the time wasn't 100% "normal" but, within that context, people still worried about and argued over all the stupid little things that everyone else was experiencing.  And what could be more normal than that?  If you've not seen it, then don't start with the final season - start right back at the beginning and enjoy following our four "teenage" girls and "the wee English fella" as they navigate school and social life filled with the most nonsensical dramas imaginable, played out against the somewhat more important political scene.

In giving out praise, we have to start with Lisa McGee who created and wrote the whole thing, based on her life - it's a very well crafted series spanning three series very well each of which has a very pleasing series finale and admirably knowing when to stop (hopefully, anyway!).  In terms of the actors, the girls are played by Saoirse-Monica Jackson, Louisa Harland, Nicola Coughlan and Jamie-Lee O'Donnell and they all do a good job in presenting themselves as a likeable bunch, with Dylan Llewellyn (I think this is the first time that someone's got a mention in two consecutive posts) being the honorary girl in the group, amusingly nonplussed by their Irish antics.  

Other actors worth mentioning include Siobhan McSweeney (who now presents Great Pottery Throwdown) as Sister George Michael who is given some absolutely cracking lines across the series ("if anyone is feeling anxious or worried or even if you just want to chat, please, please, do not come crying to me", "Should we pray for him? What use will that do?") which she delivers in a fantastically deadpan style.  And Tommy Tiernan and Ian McElhinney have an amusing father/son-in-law relationship with no insult left unused, but actually everyone acquits themselves well in a reasonably large cast.  It's also worth mentioning the guest stars in the final season - Liam Neeson and Chelsea Clinton, neither of whom I was expecting to see.

I can't claim to be an expert on Northern Ireland but I have picked up the odd fact over the years (eg "mirror" is pronounced without any vowels) - and I enjoyed the way this played to both my knowledge and lack of knowledge.  It also went down reasonably well in Northern Ireland, only being the most watched series since modern records began in 2002 (whatever that means!).  It's a funny and warm show, featuring excellent writing and performances which manages to deliver a serious message through the use of simple humanity - it's well worth a watch if you haven't seen it.

At time of writing, it's all available on All4 and I suspect it'll be there for some time yet.

#6 - A lot of warmth and humour
#10 - A really well written series