Channel 4 orders How To Get To Heaven From Belfast

Derry Girls creator Lisa McGee has written a new comedy thriller following a group of schoolfriends who reunite in adulthood.

The new eight-part Channel 4 series, entitled How To Get To Heaven From Belfast, is said to touch on ‘friendship, memory and what happens when life doesn't turn out quite how we expected’.

It revolves around successful writer Saoirse, mother-of-three Robyn and Dara, a full-time carer of an elderly parent, will find themselves embroiled in a mystery after attending the wake of a former classmate.

Their quest for the truth takes them across Ireland from their native Belfast, where ‘the pain of the past is plastered on every mural’, to the wildness of rural Donegal.

McGee said: ‘I've wanted to make a comedy thriller set in Northern Ireland for such a long time. I cannot wait to share these flawed funny women with everyone.’

Charlie Perkins, head of comedy at Channel 4, added: ‘This is huge. We couldn't be prouder that Channel 4 feels like this extraordinary show's spiritual home.’

The series will be produced by Hat Trick Productions and executive produced by Caroline Leddy and Liz Lewin, who both worked on Derry Girls, and Jimmy Mulville.

Published: 22 Aug 2023