Bloodlands season 2: Release date, cast and latest news

Victoria Smurfit is also joining the series in a major new role, playing a character called Olivia Foyle. Nesbitt previously said he "couldn’t be happier to be welcoming" Smurfit to the cast, while Smurfit added herself that she was "beyond excited to be joining the cast of Bloodlands and to be working with Jimmy again. I adored watching the first series!".

Read on for everything we know so far about Bloodlands season two, who's in the cast and what the story is likely to cover.

Bloodlands season 2 release date

After a long wait since Bloodlands season 1 debuted in early 2021, we now finally know just when the show will be returning to our screens.

Bloodlands season 2 will officially debut on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 18th September 2022, meaning there's only a matter of days left until we get to see more of Tom Brannick and Charlene McKenna.

What will happen in Bloodlands season 2?

The official synopsis for Bloodlands season 2 says: "When the murder of a crooked accountant unravels a trail of greed that threatens to expose his identity as legendary assassin, Goliath, DCI Tom Brannick and the accountant’s widow, Olivia Foyle must keep each other dangerously close.

"As they try to solve the riddle her husband left behind, and become more and more immersed in the puzzle of each other, Tom and Olivia draw in Tom’s fellow officers DS Niamh McGovern, DCS Jackie Twomey and DC 'Birdy' Bird, as well as Tom’s daughter, Izzy, until deceit and betrayal force Tom to question just what lengths he will go to to keep his legacy intact."

Season 2 of Bloodlands looks set to explore the aftermath of Pat Keenan and Tori Matthews's deaths, which Tom is responsible for.

While police believe that Pat Keenan was Goliath all along and that he killed Tori because he somehow found out that she was the one who kidnapped him, we know that Tom gave Pat Tori's identity because she knew he was the person behind the Goliath killings and he knew that Pat would kill Tori.

Tom then killed Pat to tie up any loose ends and will have told police that he did so after discovering he had killed Tori. It's also possible Emma Brannick could make her first appearance on the show – that is if we believe Tom's claims that he let her go after killing her secret lover David Cory.

Could she return to Belfast to set the story straight and reveal Tom to be the killer he really is? We'll have to wait and see.

Bloodlands season 2 cast

The confirmed cast for the new season includes James Nesbitt returning as DCI Tom Brannick, while additional returnees include Lorcan Cranitch as DCS Jackie Twomey, Charlene McKenna as DS Niamh McGovern, Chris Walley as DC 'Birdy' Bird and Lola Petticrew as Izzy Brannick.

Unfortunately, Ian McElhinney (Adam Cory), Lisa Dwan (Tori Matthews) and Peter Balance (Pat Keenan) won't be returning for season 2 as their characters were killed off in season 1, unless they appear in flashbacks, of course, but Michael Smiley could be back as forensic expert Dinger and Kathy Kiera Clarke could reprise her role as Pat Keenan's widow Claire.

Meanwhile the big new addition this season is Victoria Smurfit (Marcella, Once Upon a Time), who joins the cast as Olivia Foyle, an enigmatic widow at the centre of Brannick’s latest case.

Here's a full list of the cast so far confirmed for Bloodlands season 2:

• James Nesbitt as DCI Tom Brannick
• Charlene McKenna as DS Niamh McGovern
• Lorcan Cranitch as DCS Jackie Twomey
• Lola Petticrew as Izzy Brannick
• Chris Walley as DC 'Birdy' Bird
• Victoria Smurfit as Olivia Foyle

Bloodlands season 2 trailer

You can watch the full trailer for Bloodlands season 2 right here now.

Bloodlands returns to BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Sunday 18th September 2022 – season 1 is available to stream on BBC iPlayer. Check out more of our Drama coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.

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