Ludwig, David Mitchell's monster hit detective series, is getting a second series, it's been officially confirmed.
It's hardly a surprise given the huge viewing figures, with over 9 million viewers tuning in, but nonetheless, fans will be delighted to know for sure they haven’t seen the last of David as John "Ludwig" Taylor.
The first series, which we described as essentially Death in Paradise in Cambridge, saw puzzle setter Ludwig investigate the disappearance of his identical cop twin brother James. His brother's wife Lucy (Anna Maxwell Martin) convinces Ludwig to take on his brother's identity and he poses as his high-flying DCI brother. Ludwig, it turns out is rather good at solving murders!
David Mitchell, who's returning along with Anna Maxwell Martin, says: "I'm delighted that John 'Ludwig' Taylor has failed to escape the clutches of the Cambridge police and will have to continue to face up to the city's alarming conundrum-based crime wave."
Mark Brotherhood, Creator and Writer, says: "We've all been blown away by the reaction to Ludwig and I'm thrilled we get to come back with a whole new set of puzzles for him to solve in his unique way".
So, if you've not seen the first series please stop reading this and go and watch it now on BBC iPlayer as there are spoilers ahead!
OK, so the first series of Ludwig ended with John's team discovering that he was John and not James. It did look like John might be heading to jail for impersonating a police officer, but instead, he ended up being offered a job as a crime consultant, thus setting up the second series.
The big challenge will be can Ludwig be as much fun now that his team knows he's not really a DCI? A lot of the humour came from Ludwig pretending to be a police officer so it will be interesting to see where the second series goes now that avenue for comedy has gone. Not everyone knows the full story about Ludwig's identity, including the suspicious Chief Constable Ziegler. At the end of the first series, we see John and Lucy take away box loads of files written by blogger Sinclair, who was murdered. The second series will see John investigate what's in those files and whether Ziegler was involved in Sinclair's death.
Kenton Allen, Executive Producer and CEO Big Talk Studios, says: "The success of Ludwig is a testament to the power of Mark Brotherhood's sharp and intelligent storytelling combined with the phenomenal talents of David, Anna and the brilliant supporting cast. It's no surprise to me that the show has been such a resounding hit in these uncertain times. I think audiences crave solutions to life's problems and Ludwig's detective skills give us all comfort in this often puzzling world”.
Ludwig season 2 is likely to air in 2025.
