Jamie-Lee O’Donnell to feature in new Channel 4 documentary on Derry

Channel 4 have announced a new show called The Real Derry: Jamie-Lee O’Donnell featuring the Derry Girls star.
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The new documentary, made by Tyrone Productions, follows Jamie-Lee as she explores how things have changed since she grew up in Derry.

With her trademark wit and warmth, Jamie-Lee documents the city’s complex past while also offering her own personal insight into her upbringing in a Catholic community. Viewers will hear from real Derry girls, students at Jamie-Lee’s old school, about the regeneration of the city and why, despite this, many young people feel that they need to leave Derry to gain new skills and experiences.

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Daniel Fromm, Commissioning Editor, Popular Factual, said: “I’m hugely excited to be working with Tyrone Productions on their first commission for Channel 4 - and with Jamie-Lee in a brand new role for her. Derry Girls has brought the city to national prominence, now this film gives a voice to a new generation of its young people, so they can tell us what it’s like to grow up there in 2022.”

Jamie-Lee O'Donnell in Derry by the Peace Bridge.Jamie-Lee O'Donnell in Derry by the Peace Bridge.
Jamie-Lee O'Donnell in Derry by the Peace Bridge.

Patricia Carroll, Executive Producer, Tyrone Productions, said: “As a Northern company, we are delighted to be working with Channel 4 and Jamie-Lee O’Donnell on this very personal documentary at such an important time in the city’s story. Fiercely proud of her home city, Jamie-Lee is the perfect person to explore Derry’s past and share her hopes for its future and we know that Channel 4 audiences will be both entertained and intrigued by what she discovers.”