The Irish comedy, ‘The Young Offenders’, has made its return to BBC One a full year before it is due to air on RTÉ, underlining the prowess of Irish comedy on British television. This Cork-set series, crafted by Peter Foott, follows in the footsteps of successful Irish sitcoms like Father Ted and Derry Girls. The absence of a local air date is felt while Montrose grapples with a series of scandals from 2023.
It’s lamentable that talented Irish writers and producers must seek opportunities in London for their work to be aired. This reflects poorly on public service broadcasting in Ireland, exacerbated further by shows such as ‘The Full Irish Hidden Camera Show’.
‘The Young Offenders’ brings its fourth season with the same cherished, anarchical overtones. We see the main characters, Conor (portrayed by Alex Murphy) and Jock (played by Chris Walley), experiencing a no-cost holiday to Colombia, only to be inadvertently drawn into drug smuggling. They are arrested and thrown into jail, setting the storyline for the coming seasons.
However, ‘The Young Offenders’ appeal might not extend to everyone. The humour is direct and sometimes equates to little more than exaggerated tomfoolery. One requires a certain mood to appreciate its lowbrow, or even no-brow, humour. Despite this, the show dually serves as an encouraging showcase of Cork City’s northern side, presenting urban Ireland in a raw, authentic light that extends beyond the gangster-centric narrative prevalent in RTÉ’s drama department.
Even though The Young Offenders may not tickle your funny bone with its humour, its inherent heartwarming element still renders it enjoyable. The protagonist Conor is still grappling with his father’s demise and appears to be directionless. The start of the new series reveals a twist, as his girlfriend Linda (cast as Demi Isaac Oviawe), announces her engagement to a competing wrongdoer. This shocking news triggers a major breakdown in Conor who finds himself on her front door, only to be arrested by the gardaí and dragged back to jail.
The show meanders with a subtle sense of unruliness, but it’s evident that it falls short of both the quick-fire humour found in Derry Girls and the delightful absurdness of Father Ted. Nonetheless, it is refreshing to see Cork depicted on the small screen, unless you are a licence fee payer lacking access to the BBC. If that’s the case, you’ll need to bide your time until 2025.