Sex Education, season 3, Netflix: release date, photos, cast, plot

A lot of TV shows were postponed because of Covid, but the delay for Sex Education stung the most. The annual release of Laurie Nunn’s excellent Gen-Z comedy was becoming a January pleasure, something positive with which to start the year. Considering the last season dropped on Netflix months before the pandemic, it’s a reminder of more pleasant and naïve times.

After a lengthy hiatus, season three of this sex-positive sitcom is, um, coming this September. Here’s everything we know.

Ncuti Gatwa and Asa Butterfield as Eric and Otis. Photo: Netflix

What's the Sex Education, season 3 plot?

As always, Sex Education prides itself in using many characters and many stories at once. Teenager Otis has been running a kind of sexual health clinic for his fellow high-school students, in which he explains the detailed nuances of sex, sexuality and gender. And he’s had a hell of sexual arc himself: starting from not feeling any sexual attraction to feeling it all the time. In season 3, he’s actually having casual sex.

But is he aware of other potentially crushing events happening around him? We found out that his mother, the sex therapist Jean, is pregnant with the plumber’s baby. And what about Maeve, his punky feminist love interest? Otis left a declaration of love on her voicemail, which was deviously deleted by her neighbour Isaac. Considering season three makes a time jump from season two, it’s safe to assume that Otis thinks his love hasn’t been reciprocated.

Aimee-Lou Wood and Emma Mackey as Aimee and Maeve. Photo: Netflix

Otis’s best friend Eric has embarked on a new relationship with his former bully Adam. But will Eric be able to forget the bullying? The lovely, ditzy Aimee discovers feminism, which is fitting after season two's unforgettably moving penultimate episode. Also, the former swimming champion Jackson, who’s finally acknowledged his anxiety, has a new crush.

Jemima Kirke stars as the new headmistress, Hope. Photo: Netflix

The uptight and old-fashioned headmaster Mr Groff has been placed on leave. He's replaced by the headmistress Hope, who strives for an excellent school. And clearly, she's starting with school uniforms.

As well as all of that, Netflix is telling us to prepare for ‘commitment animals, alien phenomena, vulva cupcakes and much more of Madam Groff’.

Connor Swindells as Adam. Photo: Netflix

Who's in the Sex Education, season 3 cast?

All the idiosyncratic cast members are returning. Asa Butterfield (Greed) comes back as the sex guru/geek Otis, Gillian Anderson (The Crown) plays his sex-therapist mother Jean, Ncuti Gatwa (The Last Letter From Your Lover) plays his best friend Eric, and Emma Mackey (Death on the Nile) will undoubtedly make a rebellious entrance as the punky Maeve Wiley.

Aimee-Lou Wood (Uncle Vanya), Connor Swindells (Emma.), and Kedar Williams-Stirling (Lovers Rock) also come back as Aimee, Adam, and Jackson.

Some new additions include Jason Isaacs (Creation Stories) as Mr Groff’s more successful older brother Peter, and Dua Saleh – in their acting debut – as the new non-binary student Cal. Jemima Kirke (Conversations With Friends) stars as Hope, the new headmistress. Also, Maeve’s young half-sister Elsie has a new foster parent: Anna, played by Indra Ové (The Rise of Skywalker).

Left to right: Kedar Williams-Stirling, Dua Saleh, and Chinenye Ezeudu as Jackson, Cal, and Viv. Photo: Netflix

What's the Sex Education, season 3 release date?

Season three is finally coming to Netflix on Friday 17 September. Time to book your eight-hour appointment.