Not a History Lesson: Derry Boys writer Niall McCarthy on the Power of Personal Storytelling

In Derry Boys, writer Niall McCarthy dives headfirst into the heart of post-Troubles Northern Ireland with a play that’s as funny as it is fearless. Based on real-life stories from friends and family, the show captures what it means to grow up in Derry against a backdrop of simmering political tension, cultural confusion, and darkly comic everyday life. Drawing on influences from Derry Girls to La Haine, McCarthy’s debut is less a history lesson and more a raw, character-driven coming-of-age story for a generation still feeling the shockwaves of the past. We caught up with Niall to talk influences, writing challenges, and what today’s audiences can take from the streets of early-2000s Derry.

Derry Boys is your full-length debut. What inspired you to tell this story?

I guess it all really just came from the fact that I had so many jokes about being Irish in London and being from Derry specifically and I needed a vehicle for them, so it all just went into this play.

What artists, writers, or films influenced Derry Boys?

Four Lions, La Haine and Derry Girls were all big influences for obvious reasons, but there are also a lot of things that influenced the play in different ways like Dubliners by James Joyce, the film The Commitments, War of the Buttons. The biggest inspiration of all is real life experiences and true stories from my family and friends though.

How does the Brexit context shape the relevance of the story in 2025?

When the play was written (3 years ago) Brexit was still a really hot button issue due to the impacts it could have on the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. There was definitely a fear of a hard border being brought in and a retaliation to this from the Nationalist communities who lived in Derry and the North. These fears are what fed into the play and Brexit's role in the story.

What does Derry Boys offer to younger audiences unfamiliar with the history of Northern Ireland?

I'm not holding the audiences’ hand and educating them on a country's history, this play is about characters and how that history affected them. It is all very intuitive and I'm sure if you know nothing, you'll learn a lot, but the last thing I'm trying to do is bore people with a history or politics lesson. I hated both those subjects.

What did you discover about Northern Irish history or culture that surprised you during rehearsals or research?

Part of me didn't want to do any research, because the characters wouldn't have, they would have the very average knowledge that I and most people from Derry have (I still did some research though lol). What was surprising was that a week before rehearsals started, dissident republicans threw petrol bombs at police during a march to commemorate the Easter Rising. It was a great reminder of how relevant the piece is and how these things are still happening.

Were there any scenes or moments you found particularly difficult to write, either emotionally or structurally?

I found it too easy to write if anything, there is enough cut out of this play to have a Derry Boys 2. The difficulty is just in knowing what to cut and what to keep.

If you could describe Derry Boys in three words, what would they be?

GO. SEE. IT.

Derry Boys will be at Theatre503, London from 20th May – 7th June. For tickets and more information, visit: https://theatre503.com/whats-on/derry-boys/