Derry Girls provides a humorous take on the Northern Irish Troubles. The sitcom, following the lives of a group of teenagers living in Derry in the 1990’s, combines the grimness of the sectarian...Show moreDerry Girls provides a humorous take on the Northern Irish Troubles. The sitcom, following the lives of a group of teenagers living in Derry in the 1990’s, combines the grimness of the sectarian conflict with the recognisability of teenage hardship. In the series, trauma is inherently linked to the everyday concepts of youth, humour, and community. These concepts are used to allow the characters and the audience to think critically on the events occurring in the series, as the conflict is presented with such normalcy. Additionally, they highlight a sense of hope and kinship and advocate for a youth-inclusive approach to peacebuilding. The series can also be seen as a product of its time; not only does it portray the zeitgeist of 1990’s Derry, it is also a response to the ongoing violence and paramilitary activity in Northern Ireland since the Good Friday Agreement. Derry Girls underlines the importance of community in the processing of trauma, established the ‘Derry Girls’ as an exemplification of peacebuilding, and uses humour as a means of the demystification of conflict.Show less
