Gentleman Jack season 2 kicked off on Sunday, April 10, at 9 pm on BBC One and iPlayer, while US viewers got it on April 25 on HBO at 10 pm ET/PT.
It will again see Vigil star Suranne Jones as lesbian landowner Anne Lister. The first series of the BBC1 period drama, which was inspired by Anne’s coded diaries, explored how Anne — dubbed Gentleman Jack — had many romances including one with Ann Walker (Sophie Rundle).
It built a huge fan base and they've been desperate to know about Gentleman Jack season 2 ever since.
With that in mind, here's everything you need to know...
Gentleman Jack season 2 release date
Gentleman Jack season 2 began on Sunday, April 10, at 9 pm on BBC One and iPlayer. The US release date is set for Monday, April 25 at 10 pm ET on HBO and HBO Max. It's eight parts long and new episodes will premiere each week in these timeslots in both territories.
Star Sophie Rundle celebrated filming finishing, announcing on Instagram: "Corrr it’s been a long time coming but after a year - a whole YEAR - we have FINALLY wrapped on Gentleman Jack s2! Big, enormous love to our absolutely incredible cast and crew who put in a Herculean effort to battle pandemics, loss, births, floods and plagues of locusts to bring this beautiful love story back to our screens.
"And big love to my wife, our team captain @suranne_jones who showed us all the way. And who knows how to drink cheap champagne in a trailer like a TROOPER."
Gentleman Jack season 2 plot
The first eight-part series concluded with Anne Lister and Ann Walker getting married. So the new series follows the couple as they live together in Shibden Hall. But, with the story set in 1830s Yorkshire, they’re unlikely to be able to live a peaceful married life together as their relationship continues to cause controversy.
Writer Sally Wainwright previously teased that there’s plenty of “big, bold stories” to tell about the pair. She also spoke with What to Watch and teased some of the big storylines viewers can expect in season 2.
The BBC said: "Yorkshire, 1834. All eyes are on Anne Lister and Ann Walker as they set up home together at Shibden Hall as wife and wife, determined to combine their estates and become a power couple. Anne Lister’s entrepreneurial spirit frightens the locals as much as her unconventional love life and, with Halifax on the brink of revolution, her refusal to keep a low profile becomes provocative and dangerous."
Who’s in Gentleman Jack season 2?
Suranne Jones is back as Anne Lister, with Peaky Blinders star Sophie Rundle returning as Ann.
Talking about returning, Suranne said: “I’m so thrilled that I will be joining Sally Wainwright on the second part of Anne’s journey. We always dreamed there would be more and now we get to play it all out."
Also returning to Shibden Hall for Gentleman Jack season 2 are Gemma Jones as Aunt Anne Lister, and Timothy West as Jeremy Lister. Plus there's Jodhi May (Lady Vere Cameron), Katherine Kelly (Elizabeth Sutherland), Derek Riddell (Captain George Sutherland), Stephanie Cole (Aunt Ann Walker), Peter Davison (William Priestley), Amelia Bullmore (Eliza Priestley), Vincent Franklin (Christopher Rawson), Shaun Dooley (Jeremiah Rawson), Rosie Cavaliero (Elizabeth Cordingley), Joe Armstrong (Samuel Washington), Anthony Flanagan (Ben Sowden), and George Costigan (James Holt).
Is there a trailer?
Yes, it has finally landed!
HBO has also debuted a trailer for the new season of Gentleman Jack that you watch right here:
Gentleman Jack series one is available to stream in full on BBC iPlayer and HBO Max. Season 2 episodes will also be available once they've aired, and we've got recaps below but be warned, they contain spoilers!
Gentleman Jack season 2, episode 1 recap
Season 2 kicks off following Anne and Ann's wedding in York, which of course had to remain a secret. The couple intend to live at Anne's family residence of Shibden Hall, but fragile Ann is still under the care of Dr Belcombe (Michael Xavier).
Ann's planed relocation to Shibden Hall isn't received well by her relatives either as they believe Anne is trying to take her away from her family, which has resulted in some rows. Meanwhile, Anne’s intense ex Mariana Lawton (Lydia Leonard) sends a letter urging her to take things slowly.
But despite this, Anne is already planning the future and thinking about a honeymoon in Paris and is preoccupied with her new marriage, but not everything is so positive as she also has some financial concerns to deal with, going after a house that is up for sale and hoping to get it for cheaper. At one point she even considers turning a home into a hotel to beat local rivals the Rawsons.
Meanwhile, Anne's tenants, the Sowdens, thought their problems were solved last series when Thomas (Tom Lewis) killed his abusive dad, Sam, and fed him to their pigs and forged a letter from Sam’s brother Ben (Anthony Flanagan) saying he was in America. However Ben has now revealed he did not write the letter and Anne’s estate manager Mr Washington (Joe Armstrong) is growing suspicious.
Gentleman Jack season 2, episode 2 recap
By episode 2, Anne Lister and Ann Walker have arrived in Paris, but Anne's ex Isabella ‘Tib’ Norcliffe (Joanna Scanlan), arrives on the scene and causes complications. Drunk, Tib starts talking about Anne's former lover Mariana Lawton (Lydia Leonard), but Anne doesn't want her new wife to know too much about that.
However, Anne is forced to open up about it, expressing concerns about Mariana's jealousy surrounding her new relationship. After returning to Halifax, the couple attempt to reconcile with Ann’s family. But they're not impressed by the souvenirs they bring back or the tales of their travels, which makes Ann upset.
Meanwhile, Ben is growing suspicious about what has happened to his missing brother Sam, but he makes it clear that he’s happy to brush it off as long as he can stay on the farm. But when Thomas confronts Ben and tells him to leave, Ben threatens to expose the grisly truth about what really happened to Sam.
Gentleman Jack season 2, episode 3 recap
There's a mixed reaction at Shibden Hall to the opening of the Leeds-Selby railway line. Whilst Mariana is concerned about the trains' dizzying speeds, Anne is worried more about the railway's potential impact on the canal network. The canal committee is full of debate over the canals' future and whether its even worth continuing to invest in it.
Meanwhile, Mariana continues to cause trouble for Anne and her wife's marriage and pushes Anne to come up to Lawton Hall to pay her a visit and discuss things...which is mostly a ruse, as she accuses Anne of not really being in love with Ann!
Elsewhere, estate manager Mr Washington is being plagued by his upset children; Eliza's friend Henry has been banned from seeing her after Henry told his mother he'd seen Anne kissing her wife.
Plus, Samuel's older daughter is still finding living alongside her in-laws. Her husband Thomas is trying (and failing!) to get uncle Ben to move on. However, Ben later turns up missing, and Thomas is sporting some new cuts and bruises, sparking worries that Ben might have met the same fate as his brother, Sam.
Gentleman Jack season 2, episode 4 recap
After receiving many love letters from her former lover Mariana, Anne goes to visit her and her husband Charles (Rupert Vansittart) in Cheshire to pacify her. Mariana is clearly very upset about Anne's relationship with Ann and accuses her of not really being in love with her wife, which Anne strongly denies.
A distraught Mariana tries to kiss Anne, but Anne rejects her as she swore an oath to Ann. However, the oath is soon forgotten when the pair kiss while they take a walk in the gardens and share memories of their past relationship. Mariana also tells Anne that there are worrying rumours surrounding Charles.
Feeling guilty from her actions, Anne arrives home and tells Ann that she loves her and won't leave her again.
Meanwhile, at Shibden Hall, Marian is eager to build bridges with Ann's family, who have animosity towards Ann and Anne's relationship. She decides to visit Ann's aunt Ann (Stephanie Cole) along with her father, Jeremy (Timothy West) but it doesn't go well.
Ann also gets a surprise when her old friend James Ingham (Tom Morley) pays her visit and shows an interest in marrying her. However, she kindly turns him down, saying she's happy where she is.
Gentleman Jack season 2, episode 5 recap
Things are heating up politically for Anne Lister by episode 5, as she is eager to do anything she can to secure victory for her beloved Tory party against the Whigs and the Radicals.
There's also romance for Marian, but Anne is horrified when her sister tells her she intends to marry Mr Abbott and that he has good prospects in Halifax, with Anne telling Marian that she'd be marrying "beneath her". She even threatens to sever ties if the wedding goes ahead.
Meanwhile, Ann Walker continues to try and divide up the Walker estate between her and her sister Elizabeth, but land agent Washington explains that tenants who are in rent arrears will have to be evicted, to which Ann reluctantly agrees.
Ann's upset only continues when she finds a newspaper featuring a marriage announcement between ‘Tom’ Lister and Ann Walker, which the two women laugh off, but they're clearly being targetted. But by who?
