April 12, 2022 – 22:14 BST

Eve Crosbie


Viewers were left in total shock after Northern Ireland native Liam Neeson popped up for a special cameo in the season three premiere episode

Derry Girls made its triumphant return to screens on Tuesday night, and although fans were glad just to be reunited with Erin, Orla, Clare, Michelle and the wee English fella, James, they were left in total shock after a huge Hollywood name popped up for a special cameo.

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Households up and down the country let out a gasp when halfway through the season three premiere, the gang found themselves being interrogated by a police officer played by none of than Liam Neeson. Check out his hilarious scene below…

WATCH: Liam Neeson makes hilarious guest appearance in Derry Girls

Taking to Twitter to react to the surprise appearance from the Hollywood A-lister, one fan wrote: “LIAM NEESON?!!? God I love this show. #DerryGirls.”

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Another added: “As if the return of Derry Girls wasn’t exciting enough….. they bring in Liam Neeson,” while someone else said: “Keeping Liam Neeson’s guest appearance under wraps for this must have been the best kept secret in Derry…”

Liam Neeson made a surprise appearance in the show’s third and final season

A fourth joked: “The real reason it took three years for the new season of Derry Girls was because they were saving enough money to get Liam Neeson in it.”

For those interested in how the Taken star’s guest appearance came about, speaking at a Q&A last week following the premiere of the new series, writer and creator Lisa McGee and director Michael Lennox revealed all. 

The gang found themselves being interrogated by a police officer played by the Hollywood star

While Lisa said the experience of working with him was “really, really scary”, it turns out that the actor, who hails from Ballymena in Northern Ireland, is actually a “fan of the show”. 

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She revealed that they had used nicknames to disguise the identity of their guest star to ensure that the cameo remained under wraps but admitted that she was glad that she could finally talk about it.

Michael added that the actor had actually told them it was acclaimed actress Dame Helen Mirren that introduced him to the world of Derry Girls, and it was on her recommendation that he checked out the first two series.

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