This Way Up: Cancellation, Streaming Options & More

There’s a special kind of frustration when a show you love delivers a brilliant second season, only to vanish without explanation. That’s exactly where fans of This Way Up found themselves after its 2021 finale.

Seasons: 2 · Episodes: 12 · Network: Channel 4 · Status: Canceled · Starring: Aisling Bea · Genre: Comedy-drama

Here’s a quick reference table for the show’s details.

What is This Way Up about?

Plot summary

• A British comedy-drama set in London, the series follows Áine (Aisling Bea), a young woman rebuilding her life after a nervous breakdown. Her sister Shona (Sharon Horgan) helps her navigate the messy recovery while juggling her own challenges with work and relationships (Hulu YouTube trailer description).

Main characters

• Áine McEntire — an Irish woman working as an ESL teacher in London, fresh out of a mental health facility
• Shona — Áine’s overbearing but loving sister, played by Sharon Horgan
• Billy — A Shona’s colleague at Vexcon (a shady logistics company), a source of comic relief
• Richard — a love interest introduced in Season 2

Themes

The show explores mental health recovery, sibling dynamics, and the quiet comedy of everyday life after trauma. It is notably praised for avoiding melodrama — the tone stays light without trivialising Áine’s experience.

Two seasons, a BAFTA, and 12 tightly written episodes — that’s what the show delivered. The pattern: a small British comedy made quietly, loved loudly, and cut short.

What this means: the show’s impact is measured by its quality, not its length.

Did This Way Up get canceled?

Why it was canceled

Yes — Channel 4 canceled the show after two seasons despite widespread critical acclaim. The network never issued a formal reason for the cancellation, which remains a point of frustration for fans. The implication: in the streaming-era battle for eyeballs, a modestly rated British comedy-drama with no flashy marketing or binge-watch gimmickry simply didn’t clear the threshold for renewal (Hulu series page).

Reaction from creator Aisling Bea

Aisling Bea told The Guardian (interview) that making Season 2 was “tough.” She described feeling “covered in oil” during production and noted the weight of writing, starring, and producing the second season without certainty it would be renewed. There was a palpable sense that she had poured everything into it — and that the show’s future was out of her hands.

Will there be a season 3?

As of 2026, there is no Season 3. No streaming platform has announced a pick-up. What this means: the story of Áine and Shona ends where Bea chose to leave it — after the second season’s joyful, tentative sense of hope. For viewers who need neat closure, the lack of a third season is a genuine gap. But the two existing seasons form a complete emotional arc.

The pattern is familiar across British TV in the 2020s: small shows win critical praise, fail to hit streaming metrics, and vanish. For fans of This Way Up, the trade-off is clear — two perfect seasons rather than a diluted third.

Where can I watch This Way Up in Ireland?

Streaming on Channel 4

In the UK and Ireland, This Way Up streams free on Channel 4’s on-demand service (Channel 4). This is the official broadcast platform and offers both seasons with no subscription required.

Availability in Ireland

Irish viewers can access the show directly through Channel 4’s platform — no VPN needed (JustWatch). For viewers in other regions, regional variations apply: Hulu in the US ($9.99/month after 30-day free trial), BritBox in Australia, and Apple TV for purchase or rent (Apple TV).

Other platforms

The show is also available via Plex in the US with a Hulu subscription (Plex). It is not currently on Netflix in any region.

Netflix

This Way Up has never been available on Netflix. Despite persistent confusion (partly driven by a mental health website with a similar domain name), the show remains exclusive to Channel 4 and select streaming partners.

What this means: the streaming landscape for this show is clear and simple for most English-speaking regions.

Is This Way Up worth watching?

Critical reception

The show holds a Metacritic score of 79 across both seasons (TV Guide). Rotten Tomatoes gives Season 2 a 90% critics score based on 21 reviews (Rotten Tomatoes). Critics called it a “superb second season… giving stars Aisling Bea and Sharon Horgan plenty of room to shine” (Rotten Tomatoes).

Audience reviews

The audience score on Rotten Tomatoes is 95% (though based on fewer than 50 ratings). What this means: those who find the show tend to love it deeply. It’s not a mass hit — it’s a cult favourite.

Awards

This Way Up won a BAFTA for Best Scripted Comedy, confirming its status as a critically celebrated British comedy (Rotten Tomatoes). The trade-off: award recognition didn’t translate to the viewership numbers needed for renewal.

Aisling Bea’s series proves that quality over quantity can still leave audiences satisfied, despite the lack of a third season.

Are Sharon Horgan and Aisling Bea friends?

Sharon Horgan and Aisling Bea’s collaboration

Sharon Horgan appears in the show as Shona, Áine’s sister, and has worked with Aisling Bea on multiple projects. Bea has spoken warmly about Horgan’s role in the show. While both have confirmed they are collaborators, their personal friendship status has not been publicly detailed. The implication for fans: the on-screen chemistry between the two actors is genuinely strong, and is rooted in mutual professional respect and shared Irish comedic sensibility.

Billy’s role in Vexcon

Billy (Aasif Mandvi) works for Vexcon, the shady logistics company where Shona is employed. He provides comic relief and serves as a plot device to highlight Shona’s career dissatisfaction (Rotten Tomatoes).

Aisling Bea’s background

Aisling Bea is of Irish and Indian ethnicity. Her father is of Indian descent and her mother is Irish (The Guardian interview). Her multicultural background enriches her perspective as a writer and performer, and is part of what makes her take on London life so distinctive.

The pattern across Bea’s collaborations: she works with people she trusts, and it shows. The on-screen ease between Horgan and Bea isn’t just good acting — it’s the result of a carefully chosen creative circle.

“It was tough to make.”

— Aisling Bea, on producing Season 2, speaking to The Guardian

Bea also described feeling “covered in oil” and trying to find joy during production (The Guardian).

Summary

This Way Up is a case study in the gap between critical success and commercial viability in modern British television. The show was BAFTA-winning, praised for its nuanced mental health portrayal, and deeply loved by those who found it. But that wasn’t enough to save it. For viewers in the UK and Ireland, the decision to watch is simple: two seasons, free to stream, no commitment. Aisling Bea’s series ends with two perfect seasons, and fans must accept that as the complete story — or wait, like many, for a revival that may never come.

Related reading: This Way Up TV series: cancellation status, Season 2 watch options, and viewing guide

Frequently asked questions