Saoirse-Monica Jackson, who played Erin Quinn in the hit Channel 4 sitcom Derry Girls, has admitted she was terrified she would never work again after the first season aired. The 30-year-old actress feared her physical comedy performance, inspired by her teenage cousin and comic actors like Jim Carrey, had been too over-the-top and that she had blown her big break.
Jackson recalled feeling extremely vulnerable and anxious when the show debuted in 2018, worrying that she would never be cast in anything else. However, Derry Girls became the most popular Channel 4 comedy since Father Ted, broke viewing records in Northern Ireland, and became a global hit on Netflix.
Since then, Jackson has landed roles in major productions, including the DC superhero film The Flash alongside Ezra Miller and Ben Affleck, the Paramount+ period thriller The Doll Factory, and the Netflix series The Decameron, based on Giovanni Boccaccio's 14th-century stories.
Looking back, Jackson said the initial insecurity taught her a valuable lesson: 'if you half-arse a big decision, it's never going to work'. She now feels more confident in her creative choices.
The actress, who grew up near Derry and attended a similar all-girls Catholic school, noted that the show has turned the city into a tourist hotspot. She said the experience of Derry Girls is unlikely to ever be matched, calling it a 'fundamental change' in her life.
One surreal moment came when former Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith praised the show in the House of Commons. Jackson described it as one of the most surreal experiences of her life.
