Normal People becomes Ireland's Bank Holiday binge as Netflix adds the hit series
Within hours it shot into the Top 3 of Netflix's most‑watched shows in Ireland, currently holding third place on the Irish chart as eager viewers settle in for the long bank holiday weekend, a prime time for binge‑watching.
After its debut on RTÉ and BBC/Hulu in 2020, Normal People has gone on to become one of the most celebrated Irish dramas of the decade, with over 62 million streams on iPlayer alone and multiple awards back home including nine wins at the Irish Film & Television Awards. Netflix welcomed the Irish-made hit Normal People onto its platform in the UK and Ireland this week, and the internet has lost their minds all over again. Pic: Element Pictures/Enda Bowe
Now, boosted by Netflix's global reach, the show appears to be finding a second surge of popularity among audiences, many of whom are rediscovering Marianne and Connell's tumultuous romance as the perfect bank holiday binge.
Gauging their target audience, Netflix announced the addition to their roster by tweeting:
'NORMAL PEOPLE starter kit for those watching: Weighted blanket
An oversized hoodie to cry in
Mood lighting (for emotional damage)
A carefully curated playlist of sad indie tunes.' Within hours it shot into the Top 3 of Netflix's most‑watched shows in Ireland, currently holding third place on the Irish chart as eager viewers settle in for the long bank holiday weekend, a prime time for binge‑watching. Pic: Element Pictures/Enda Bowe
Fans took to X almost immediately after Netflix launched the series, flooding the platform with excitement and fear at the new addition.
'Thoughts and prayers to the 1st time watchers,' one user wrote.
'Those UK viewers bout to feel something,' another added.
NORMAL PEOPLE starter kit for those watching:☑️ Weighted blanket☑️ An oversized hoodie to cry in☑️ Mood lighting (for emotional damage)☑️ A carefully curated playlist of sad indie tunes
Now playing on @NetflixUK! pic.twitter.com/Ez4KItFXoM — Netflix UK & Ireland (@NetflixUK) August 3, 2025
'After watching this series you'd feel genuinely afraid to die alone,' a third joked.
Earlier this summer, a string of never-seen-before pictures from the set of Normal People have been released, five years after the Paul Mescal-led show took us by storm.
The show catapulted the Maynooth man into the spotlight, premiering on April 26, 2020, at the beginning of the global pandemic. After its debut on RTÉ and BBC/Hulu in 2020, Normal People has gone on to become one of the most celebrated Irish dramas of the decade, with over 62 million streams on iPlayer alone and multiple awards back home including nine wins at the Irish Film & Television Awards. Pic: Element Pictures/Enda Bowe
Set photographer Enda Bowe took to social media to share some unseen photographs from filming the show, as he detailed the 'privilege' he feels having been a part of the experience.
'Five years on from Normal People, I've returned to a quiet archive of images — moments held in the hush between takes,' Enda wrote.
'Being the photographer on set was such a privilege on this wonderful project with wonderful people and meant moving gently through the spaces where story and reality met, witnessing the tenderness that unfolded behind the camera.'
Enda added that the photos he was sharing were 'fragments of that time.'
'The stillness before a scene, the laughter after a line, the soft focus of something fleeting,' he detailed.
'Shared now, with gratitude for the people who made it, and for the ones who watched it and felt something true.'
The photographer added that the pictures offered a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the atmosphere and collaboration that resulted in Normal People.
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