'Derry Girls' season three begins filming next week, could be final season

UPDATE: The series will end after season three

UPDATE: Creator Lisa McGee has confirmed that 'Derry Girls' will only have three seasons.

McGee broke the news on Twitter, writing: "It was always the plan to say goodbye after three series."

The original story follows.

According to sources, comedy fans - 'Derry Girls' could be coming to an end. Although not confirmed by Channel 4, the rumour mill is rife that the sitcom created by Lisa McGee will get its third and final outing in 2022.

The series stars Saoirse-Monica Jackson, Nicola Coughlan, Jamie-Lee O'Donnell, Louisa Harland and Dylan Llewellyn as five teenagers who attend school in Derry during the 1990s, and the hilarious antics they manage to get themselves into. There's also Siobhán McSweeney, Tara Lynne O'Neill, Tommy Tiernan and Ian McElhinney on hand to try to keep them in check.

A source has said that 'Derry Girls' will end after its next instalment, although it's unconfirmed by the channel. They said: "Derry Girls has had a great run and will go down as one of Channel 4’s best ever comedies.

"But the show’s come to its natural end and everybody associated believes it’s the right time to go, when there’s such a demand for it."

With the younger cast members not getting any, erm, younger (they're all in their late 20s and early 30s), it makes sense for the series to bow out now that their acting agendas are becoming increasingly busier. Galway actor Nicola Coughlan has already starred in Netflix's 'Bridgerton' and will appear in the second season; while Saoirse-Monica Jackson will next appear in the comic-book movie 'The Flash' in an undisclosed role.

In terms of the third season, filming is due to begin very soon. According to the stars of the series, the cast will pick up filming as early as next week, the end of September.

However, it might not be the very end of 'Derry Girls'. Lisa McGee has hinted in the past that a movie could conclude the story of these five teenagers in Derry. She told Ray D'Arcy on his RTE Radio 1 show in 2020: "After series three I’ll think about that a bit more. I’d like to do it and I think the cast would too so that would be the long-term plan."

Last week, the Northern Irish comedy was in the news after a UK minister claimed the series was "distinctly British", which caused a ruckus online.

'Derry Girls' season three will hit Channel 4 in 2022.