Adam Gunton
Derry Girls
All4, Out Now
Slowed down by the pandemic, the Derry Girls (and the wee English fella) are back for their third and final series. If you haven’t seen this show, then you need to do yourself a favour and fix that. The show by Lisa McGee follows a group of young people growing up in Derry, Ireland during the troubles in the nineties. You’d think they’d be living in worry but they’re busy dealing with their families, their Catholic school run by the hilarious Sister Michael and all the trials and tribulations of being a teenager. The cast is perfect and they’re all so incredibly funny and it is both well-written and performed. The final series is set during the tail-end of the troubles as the teenagers finish sitting their GCSEs and start thinking about the future.
Stranger Things Season 4 –
Volume 1
Netflix, 27 May
The show with one of the best casts around is finally back. Things are getting stranger in Stranger Things. Seems obvious but trust me, it’s stranger than you could realise. The Upside Down is going downside-up-out. Meaning, the monsters that have been fighting their way into Hawkins over the past three seasons are no longer holding back. A powerless Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) feels helpless to stop the impending doom but those plucky kids along with Joyce Byers and Jim Hopper (who’s in Russia?!) will find a way to beat the Demogorgons, the Mind Flayers and whatever else the Upside Down can throw at them. Hopefully we’ll get some fun eighties vibes in amongst all the monsters and destruction.
The Time Traveller’s Wife
Sky Atlantic, 27 May
You may have seen the 2009 film starring Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams but this is a new television series based on the novel by Audrey Niffenegger. Claire (Rose Leslie from Game Of Thrones) and Henry (Theo James) have the perfect marriage. Apart from the fact that Henry is a time traveller and will disappear without notice, leaving a pile of clothes where he was. Claire is left wondering where and when he is, hoping that he’s safe and that he finds his way back to her. Can their relationship stand the literal test of time? The show is brought to us by Steven Moffat, previous showrunner of Doctor Who during the Matt Smith era and BBC’s Sherlock so you know it’s going to be more than you expect.
Star Wars: Obi-Wan Kenobi
Disney+, 27 May
Hello there! General Kenobi is back. Fan favourite Ewan McGregor returns as the Jedi Master. He was certainly one of the best things to come out of the over-all disappointing prequel trilogy. The series takes place between the third and fourth episodes of Star Wars, where Obi-Wan is protecting a young Luke Skywalker from a distance on the desert planet Tatooine. Meanwhile, Darth Vader (played by returning actor Hayden Christensen) is sending out Inquisitors to hunt and kill hiding Jedi. We know how the story of Kenobi and Vader ends but this limited series will fill in the lost time and give us an exciting rematch between Jedi Knight and Sith Lord, master and apprentice, brother and brother.
Did you know?
Friends wasn’t always going to be called Friends? Some working titles were were Insomnia Café, Friends Like Us, and Six of One, before everyone settled on Friends.