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Warning: The following contains spoilers for Derry Girls Season 3.
If someone has yet to watch Derry Girls, they are missing out. The British sitcom follows a group of five teenagers enrolled in an all-girls Catholic school during the Northern Ireland conflict in the 1990s. The series isn’t all politics and religion, though, as Lisa McGee’s writing tastefully balances comedy with the serious issues affecting the families living in Londonderry.
The third season was announced as the final season long before it became available to stream on Netflix. With the entire series now available to watch, fans can see what episodes are considered the best thanks to the Internet Movie Database's ranking system on a scale of 1 to 10.
Updated on October 19th, 2022 by Amanda Bruce: Websites like IMDb allow users (fans and critics alike) to rate episodes of television after their release. Ratings can continue coming in for years after the release, which means the rankings for a show like Derry Girls, which originally aired in England before Netflix picked it up for the rest of the world, can remain in a state of flux for a long time. Though Season 3 of Derry Girls aired in England months before becoming available to stream on Netflix, the ratings for the episodes continue to change, putting several episodes from the final season into the top 10.
Season 3, Episode 4 (8.2)
Every television series loves a good haunted house episode, right? This episode of Derry Girls is part misadventure, part ghost story as the group spends the night in an adult-free house in Donegal that they’re supposed to be cleaning up for Sister Michael.
Of course, the group thinks the house is haunted, and of course, that’s after having a mishap trying to actually get to the house that results in James being briefly knocked out. It’s one misadventure after another that is hilarious, followed by a very sweet moment between James, Erin, and then Michelle that proves how strong the friendships are in the group, no matter what they might fight about.
Season 3, Episode 6 (8.2)
If the show hadn’t been given the opportunity to do a special closing episode, this would have been the series finale. If it had been, there’s a good chance it wouldn’t have nearly as high of a ranking as it does.
While it initially has all the hallmarks of a standard hilarious Derry Girls episode (James put in an awkward situation by the girls, Clare finally getting a chance to find someone interested in her, and the girls scheming their way into a concert), the episode ends in tragedy. That’s a sharp turn for a series that has been a comedy, and even though it actually works very well thanks to the acting abilities of everyone involved, it would have been incredibly jarring for the audience.
Season 2, Episode 1 (8.3)
The girls and James embark on an exciting "Friends Across the Barricade" weekend retreat to mingle with teens from a Protestant boys’ school. At the peace initiative meant to encourage integration and settle differences, Michelle and Erin are on the lookout for good-looking Protestants. James is determined to make friends with the other boys, but Orla stands in his way with a rekindled confidence after she reconnects with the wild. Clare finds herself in grave danger after attempting to acquaint herself with a “fully-blown” Protestant.
The Season 2 premiere really stepped back in time for Irish audiences as it highlighted a fictional teen peace program. The Derry Girls program, however, is modeled after programs that really existed.
Season 3, Episode 2 (8.3)
The second episode of Season 3 gave fans a better look at Erin’s mother’s life. While the focus of the show is undeniably Erin and her friends, Erin’s mother and her friends were the Derry Girls of the previous generation.
The episode allows the audience to see that Mary might not always be the most satisfied with her life, which leads to a misunderstanding in which Erin thinks Mary is cheating on Gerry with their new plumber. That’s clearly not the case, but it opens Erin and her friends up to seeing their parents as people with their own lives as well. It’s a nice glimpse at the older generation in the show. Of course, the episode also involves a pretty great performance by the main five teens as the Spice Girls.
Season 2, Episode 3 (8.4)
A polar bear on the loose hinders the group’s chance to see a Take That concert in Belfast, but the adults forbidding the group from going isn’t enough to prevent them from boarding a bus and finding their own way there. The teens run into the always-suspicious Sister Michael and cover up their plan to sneak into the concert as a trip for a history project. Encounters with a band of travelers and a reckless, free-spirited merchandise vendor on the way complicate the rebellious journey.
As any road trip in the series shows, things never go according to plan for this group. The hilarious episode is full of one misadventure after another.
Season 1, Episode 6 (8.5)
Erin steps in as editor of the school magazine, followed by her friends joining her publishing team. Erin steals a coming-out letter written by an anonymous student and puts it on the front page, despite Sister Michael’s attempt to censor the magazine. The gang is divided over a shocking revelation and reunites to support Orla’s talent show routine. Gerry loses his ticket to pick up Mary’s birthday photos, and Joe is no help when he refuses to vouch for the family’s ownership of the photos.
Definitely a Derry Girls episode in which the audience is divided on whether to love or hate Erin, just how pushy she is with her friends is highlighted, but so are her own dreams. The series also made Clare's coming out as funny as it is heartwarming.
Season 2, Episode 4 (8.5)
Aunt Sarah upstages the bride at a wedding, and the state of affairs worsens at the reception when Erin, Orla, Clare, Michelle, and James “Rock The Boat” on the dance floor. Aunt Bridie scolds Mary’s parenting and insults the Quinn family. Heads turn when Bridie drops dead at Mary’s words. She is believed to have placed a wicked curse on the woman. Bridie’s wake turns into a silent commotion when Michelle’s “funny” scones wind up in the kitchen and the teens must retrieve them at any cost.
Easily one of the funniest episodes of the series overall, the episode is able to split its time well among the adults and the teens who are all up to their own schemes.
Season 2, Episode 5 (8.5)
A new student, Mae, arrives at Our Lady Immaculate College, and Jenny and the dance committee organize a 1950s style prom instead of the normal school formal. The girls search for prom dates and dresses, except for Orla, who has already found a date and is content with her Easter dress. James is planning on attending a Doctor Who convention on the night of the dance, but his plans end up derailed.
The episode borrows a bit from Carrie, which the characters even discuss as an homage to the movie. It's an episode that highlights the strong friendships between the characters as Michelle offers up her mother's credit card for dresses, James fills in as Erin's date, and Clare realizes her new friend is bad news.
Season 2, Episode 6 (8.8)
For over two years, the top spot for best Derry Girls episode was filled by the final episode of Season 2. The people of Derry prepare for Bill Clinton’s historic visit following the ceasefire. Unable to befriend Chelsea Clinton, the girls and James skip school to witness the presidential visit, and a surprise visitor for the latter arrives in town.
Meanwhile, Granda Joe is insistent on meeting President Clinton and tries tapping into the CIA’s radio transmission with the help of a friend. Gerry is dragged along as the getaway driver on a mission to locate and meet the Clintons. The episode and season conclude with a decision of fate, a message of peace, and what it means to be a Derry girl.
Season 3, Episode 7 (9.1)
It’s good that Derry Girls was allowed one more special episode to close out the show’s story. It focuses on the Good Friday Referendum, and just how the vote can divide friends and family. Michelle and Erin, for example, don’t see eye to eye, and it’s clear that their feelings are complicated, not black and white.
The episode allows the show to go out on a hopeful note instead of the tragedy that ends the previous episode. It also allows the show to call back to one of the most significant episodes of the show - the Season 2 finale - as Chelsea Clinton finally gets her letter from the Derry Girls. It’s a great moment to end the series on.