Picture: Netflix
Sad news for fans of Lisa McGee’s comedic thriller. How to Get to Heaven from Belfast will not be returning for a second season at Netflix.
The news was first reported by BroadcastNow, who confirmed with Netflix that the eight-part comedy thriller has been officially axed after a single outing, although the writing has been on the wall for quite some time.
Produced by Hat Trick Productions, the series followed a tight-knit trio of friends who embark on a dark but hilarious quest to unravel the mystery surrounding their old friend’s suspicious death. The show had a bit of a bumpy ride getting to our screens in the first place. As we covered in our cast and series preview, it was initially greenlit by the UK broadcaster Channel 4 in 2023. However, it made the jump to Netflix in 2024 following “changes in editorial direction,” rising costs, and a softening in the US-UK co-production market.
When the show finally launched in February, it was met with broad acclaim from critics and audiences alike. We praised the series in our review of the show, pointing out that the Derry Girls creator had struck gold again with a brilliant blend of tension and comedy.
So, why the cancellation? Ultimately, it comes down to the viewership numbers.
As we noted in our season 2 renewal prediction guide, the show was a modest local hit at best but struggled to make a splash internationally. According to Broadcast, BARB data (the UK equivalent to Nielsen) from overnights.tv also revealed a very solid domestic premiere, with the opening episode racking up 1.8 million viewers in its first seven days.
A deeper dive into the daily top 10 data perfectly illustrates why the show couldn’t quite secure that coveted global reach. Unsurprisingly, the comedy thriller performed best in its own backyard, taking the number one spot and racking up an impressive 156 points over a 26-day streak in Ireland, followed closely by a strong 20-day run in the United Kingdom, where it also peaked at #1. Beyond the British Isles, the series managed to find a modest audience in a handful of other English-speaking and Nordic territories—peaking at number three in Norway and New Zealand, and number four in Australia, surviving in the top 10 for 12 days in each. However, its international footprint was incredibly limited outside of these 16 regions; it barely made a dent in markets like Canada and the Netherlands, where it scraped the bottom of the charts for a mere two or three days, and notably failed to chart at all in the all-important US market.
However, the writing was arguably already on the wall for the show’s demise. Last month, Netflix unveiled a massive UK slate at the Edinburgh TV Festival, and among the huge announcements was a brand new commission for Lisa McGee.
The new project, titled Jig, promises to bring her incredibly sharp, laugh-out-loud comedic voice to the fiercely competitive and eccentric world of Irish dancing. Billed as a mockumentary, the new series teams McGee up with Orchid Pictures and sees her reuniting with her long-time Derry Girls creative collaborators, Liz Lewin and Caroline Leddy. Orchid’s chief executive, Suzanne Mackie, is also on board to produce. While the premise alone sounds like a recipe for absolute comedy gold, we will have to exercise a little patience—cameras aren’t scheduled to start rolling on Jig until sometime in 2027.
Are you disappointed that How to Get to Heaven from Belfast won’t be returning for season 2 on Netflix? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below.
