Sex Education season 3 recap: what happened at end of third series of Netflix comedy drama, when is S4 out?

The final season of Sex Education is finally coming to Netflix after a two year wait - the moment will be bittersweet for fans of the show who will soon have to say goodbye to the students whose complicated lives they have followed since the series premiered in 2019.

The third season of Sex Education was a real whirlwind - Maeve and Otis finally begin a romance, but fate cruelly intercedes, whilst Eric finds himself, and there are plenty of break ups.

Eric travelled to Lagos and discovered his roots, the Moordale students faced off against a cruel headmistress, Otis and Maeve became intimate on a school trip, and Jean prepared to have a child with Jakob.

With the final season of the show about to air, we’ve recapped what happened in season three so you know where the main characters stand at the start of season four.

What happened at the end of Sex Education season 3?

After a surprising and brief romance between Ruby and Otis, the pair split when Otis confesses that he still has feelings for Maeve, leaving Ruby devastated.

Maeve and Otis seem to finally be on track to become a proper couple after three seasons of will they won’t they tension. In the fifth episode of the season, the pair share their first kiss on a school trip to France, but things then get derailed pretty quickly.

Maeve rushes to find Otis where she tells him that she is about to catch a flight to the US to take part in a programme for gifted writers. This essentially means that their relationship, which is only just getting started, will have to go very long distance immediately, teasing a tough time for the pair in the next season. However, Maeve insists that her move across the pond isn’t permanent and that she will see Otis soon.

Another major event in the season three finale was the closure of Moordale, the school the characters have attended for the entire show so far. As the students rebel against their Dolores Umbridge-like new headmistress Hope, sabotaging the open day and performing ‘F*ck the Pain Away’, the school loses its investors and is forced to close - meaning that the gang will move to a new location for season four.

Lily and Ola - who won’t return in season four - had their storylines neatly wrapped up as the pair watched the skies for UFOs together and shared a kiss. Meanwhile Adam, following his heartbreaking split from Eric, shines at a dog competition, getting a special mention in a long awaited win for the troubled teen. 

Jean, who learned she was pregnant in the season two finale, has her baby, though she experiences complications during the birth and comes close to death. She pulls through and gives birth to a healthy baby Joy, Otis’ half-sister. But in a final twist, it is revealed that Jakob, Jean’s partner through the season, is not Joy’s father.

Eric really found himself in this season, following a trip to Lagos in which he kissed another man - he tells Adam about the kiss and the pair break up. Eric knows that he needs to be with someone who is confident in their sexuality and that Adam is not there yet.

Other breakups include Jackson and Cal, as the pair are not on the same page about Cal’s identity as non-binary, Maureen and Michael Groff, who split because their complicating relationship is affecting their son, Adam, and Aimee and Steve, because Aimee is not yet comfortable with physical intimacy following her assault.

When is Sex Education season 4 out?

The fourth and final season of Sex Education comes to Netflix on Thursday 21 September. There are eight episodes in the season, including an 80-minute finale, and all the episodes will be released at the same time.