Olivia Colman to return for a second series of Channel 4 comedy Flowers
Will Sharpe’s comedy starring Julian Barratt as a depressed children’s illustrator is getting a second run despite an unspectacular performance in the ratings
Channel 4’s eccentric comedy Flowers will bloom again.
A second series of the dark comedy will see the return of Olivia Colman’s Deborah and her depressed husband Maurice (Julian Barratt), the broadcaster has announced.
The six-part run will look at a new era of their marriage and whether they can survive the challenges laid bare in series one, including Maurice’s suicide attempt and Deborah’s infidelity.
The Flowers’ twins Donald (Daniel Rigby, Black Mirror, Eric and Ernie) and Amy (Sophia di Martino, The Darkest Universe, Friday Night Dinner) will also be back, as will the character of Shun, the Flowers’ Japanese factotum played by the writer Will Sharpe.
The recommission is a sign of Channel 4's faith in the show: it opened in April with 710,000 viewers for episode one. Overnight ratings dropped to 400,000 in the middle of the run before rallying to 680,000 for the series finale.
The show's consolidated viewing was an average of 1m viewers per episode across the five episodes.
Deputy Head of Comedy Nerys Evans, who commissioned the show for Channel 4 said: “Covering deeply complex issues like fidelity, mental health, sexuality and fraying family bonds, Will Sharpe’s hilariously awkward and heart-breaking show offers another unmissable look at the Flowers’ messed up world.
"Will’s scripts and the show’s perfect cast are so brilliant at making you wail with laughter one minute, and well up the next. I couldn’t be more excited for the family’s return to Channel 4.”
