Channel 4’s ‘Derry Girls’ was created by Lisa McGee and is a British teen sitcom inspired by McGee’s personal experiences in the final years of the ethnic-nationalist conflict known as the Troubles. Set in the 1990s.
The story follows the lives of five teenagers at Our Lady Immaculate College, a fictional all-girls Catholic high school based on Thornhill College, where McGee actually studied. The group of friends often find themselves in bizarre situations during the Troubles thanks to the political unrest and cultural differences that the conflict caused.
A light-hearted take on a serious subject like The Troubles keeps things interesting and light in every episode of the comedy series. Plus, the 1990s setting and the use of different locations throughout the narrative will probably make you want to know where the “Derry Girls” Tv series is filmed.
Where Was Derry Girls Series Filmed?
“Derry Girls” is filmed in Northern Ireland and Ireland, mainly in counties Londonderry, Antrim, Down, and Donegal. Filming for the initial iteration of the Channel 4 series reportedly began in May 2017 and ended in July 2017. As for the second round, production began in October 2018 and seemingly finished in December 2018.
Principal photography for the third season was scheduled to begin in the spring of 2020, but the Covid-19 pandemic got in the way. After several months of delays, filming for the third season finally began in October 2021 and ended in December of that year. Now let’s not waste time and go through all the specific sites that appear on the Derry Girls British show!
Northern Ireland
As most of the story takes place in Derry, as the title suggests, most of the filming takes place in Londonderry AKA County Derry, one of the six counties of Northern Ireland. As well as shooting some shots in the Londonderry countryside.
The crew set up camp at various locations around the city for filming, including Dennis’s Wee Shop on Westland Street (now closed), the Foyle Valley Railway Museum at 1 Foyle Road, and the Bogside Stores at 13 Meenan Square.
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In addition, the heartbreaking funeral scene in season 3 took place in the church of St. Augustine on Palace Street in Londonderry. As for the Halloween scenes in the third season, they were filmed in St. Columb’s Hall at 10a Newmarket Street, Orchard Street in Londonderry.
While the scene where Granda Joe buys the cream horn was filmed on Pump Street, the scene where the girls chase Toto was filmed across Orchard Row in Londonderry.
In addition, the production team used the locations of many other locations in the county, including Derry City Walls, Magazine Street, the River Foyle, Limewood Street, The Third Bridge, and Guildhall Street in Londonderry.
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Many key parts of “Derry Girls” are also recorded in County Antrim, another of Northern Ireland’s six counties. First and foremost, there are two different locations that represent the fictional Virgin Mary Immaculate College in the series.
They are Hunterhouse College on Upper Lisburn Road in Finaghy and St. Mary’s University College Belfast at 191 Falls Road, both in Belfast. Property in New Barnsley Park in Belfast serves as Erin’s home in the show.
In addition, Smithfield Market on Winetavern Street in Belfast means a mall where girls shop for prom dresses. The interior scene where Clare witnesses the weeping statue of Mary was recorded in the parish church of St. George at 105 High Street in Belfast.
In addition, the cast and crew set up camp at various other locations, including Belfast, Brennan’s Chippie at 29 North Street, John Long’s at 39 Athol Street, Belfast, and Barry’s Amusements (now known as Curry’s Fun Park) at 16 Eglinton. A street in Portrush.
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Several important sequences for ‘Derry Girls’ take place in County Down, which borders County Antrim to the north. The Wee Store at 70 Killard Road in Ballyhornan doubled for the Burt taxi booking office in its second season. Additionally, train scenes in season 3 were filmed at Downpatrick and County Down Railway on Market Street in Downpatrick.
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In order to film some other parts of ‘Derry Girls’, the crew stopped in County Donegal, a county in the province of Ulster, Ireland. Several location shots were shot for the series in Burt, a parish in County Donegal.
Located in the northwestern tip of Ireland, right next to Northern Ireland, County Donegal is named after the town of Donegal, located in the southern part of the country.
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