Derry Girls creator Lisa McGee has just made history after being the first woman to be awarded the Freedom of Derry.
The Irish screenwriter won international praise for the hit show and attended a short ceremony with her parents, husband and two sons to receive the honorary award.
The award was proposed by Social Democratic and Labour Party councillor Martin Reilly and took place at Derry’s Guildhall.
Speaking about the decision, Mr Reilly said the ceremony would be an opportunity for the city “to show how proud we are of Lisa”.
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“The freedom of the city is the highest honour a council can bestow on an individual and it’s really great that Derry Girls is being recognised and, more importantly, a Derry girl specifically is being recognised.”
Lisa shared how proud she felt to be from Derry and how “surreal” it felt to receive the award.
“I’m immensely proud to be from Derry. As a writer working in television, an industry that’s notoriously tough to break into and to survive in, being from Derry has always felt like my superpower.”
“Since the success of Derry Girls, many people have asked me to explain that advantage more specifically, is it the legacy of John Hume’s political genius?”
“Is it the literary flair of Seamus Heaney or the soundtrack of Phil Coulter? Or is it the fact that when you go into any restaurant here, you’ll be asked ‘What wee side do you want with your wee side?’ And I think it’s all of those things,” she continued.
Lisa concluded by revealing that she is going to continue writing about the place that she not only comes from but loves too.
Just the other week, Oscar-winning director Scorsese revealed last week that he is currently watching Derry Girls and loves it.
Lisa will now join names such as ohn Hume, Phil Coulter, and Winston Churchill, who have also all received the award.
