Plans approved for new Derry Girls exhibit and new trail

Derry City and Strabane District Council has approved plans for a new Derry Girls exhibition in the city.

Funding has been secured to introduce a Home of Derry Girls pilot exhibition in the Tower Museum, as well as to establish a walking trail that takes in key filming locations from the series.

Members of the council's business and culture committee gave unanimous approval to the proposals on Tuesday.

It is hoped the exhibit will bolster tourism for the city and district.

The committee was informed that funding of £80,000 has been secured for the proposed exhibit and walking trail.

Derry Girls, which first aired on Channel 4 in 2018, follows four teenage girls - and "a wee English fella" - growing up in Londonderry in Northern Ireland during the 1990s.

It tracks the group as they navigate the ups and downs of teenage life, all in the shadow of the final years of the Troubles.

Derry Girls has been a massive success for Channel 4, winning Royal Television Society Awards, Irish Film and Television Awards and being nominated for BAFTAs.

The final episode aired on Wednesday 18 May after three series.

Council's head of culture, Aeidin McCarter, detailed the proposals to members along with plans to explore further opportunities to create a longer term Derry Girls experience in the city.

Ms McCarter said that the worldwide success of the award-winning series, created by Derry screenwriter Lisa McGee, presented a fantastic opportunity to enhance the tourism offering.

Ms McGee was awarded the freedom of Derry City and Strabane at a ceremony in December in recognition of the "global positive impact" that her work has had on the city and district.

She was the first woman to receive the council's highest honour.

The proposed exhibition in the Tower Museum will allow visitors to explore some of the sets, props and memorabilia from the TV show.

This will be used to test public interest in the concept, before working towards a more ambitious permanent visitor experience in the city featuring a more extensive Derry Girls collection.

The report will be brought before full council for final ratification at the end of the month.

Chair of committee, councillor John McGowan said he was delighted to see Tourism NI investing in this exciting venture for the city.

"The Derry Girls phenomenon has really captured the imagination - not just here, but across the world - and has the potential to draw visitors from far and wide," Mr McGowan said

He said people will be able "to experience for themselves the warmth, humour and uniqueness of this wonderful place".

Subject to the successful appointment of a designer and exhibition coordinator, a taster promotional display will open in the Tower Museum in March.

It will feature items from the show with additional augmented-reality interaction which will set the scene for the bigger exhibition due to open in the summer.

"We hope to create an exciting high-quality, original, immersive visitor experience completely unique to this city," Ms McCarter explained.

"The project will highlight the social impact of the Derry Girls phenomenon, the roots of its setting against the backdrop of 1990s culture, the Troubles and of course the peace process, all captured with great humour and poignancy in the show."