Everything To Remember Ahead of 'Sanditon' Season 3

Sanditon's first season was a hit for PBS when it debuted in early 2020, but it came with a pair of disappointments baked in. The first was that the series, based on the unfinished Jane Austen novel, and written by Austen auteur Andrew Davies, had been canceled by ITV for poor viewership in the U.K. before the series debuted in America. The second was that Davies had written a cliffhanger ending, expecting a second season, leaving heroine Charlotte Heywood (Rose Williams) unmarried, sobbing in a carriage home to the farm, while her true love Sidney Parker (Theo James) married another, a very un-Austen ending indeed.

However, Peak TV has room for all, and after a year and change of negotiations, Masterpiece secured a two-season renewal of the series, which it filmed back to back. Not everyone was attached to come back — most notably James, leaving Charlotte's character in want of a new true love. Davies also moved on, leaving the project in the hands of Season 1 co-writer Justin Young. Young, for his part, added a bevy of new, available men, a younger sister for Charlotte, Alison Heywood (Rosie Graham), and one central mystery surrounding the exit of the previous hero.

Season 2 also brought back several Season 1 favorites, starting with Georgiana Lambe (Crystal Clarke), Charlotte's BFF and heiress to her late father's fortune. The Parker family, which is investing in Sanditon, returned as well, including Tom (Kris Marshall), his wife Mary (Kate Ashfield), and Tom's unmarried younger brother Arthur (Turlough Convery), who is also Georgiana's other BFF. Lady Denham (Anne Reid), the town benefactor, also turned up with her niece, Esther (Charlotte Spencer), now Lady Babbington, as did Esther's two nemeses, Edward (Jack Fox) and Lady Denham's former ward Clara (Lily Sacofsky).