'Ridley' Renewed for Season 2 Ahead of PBS Premiere

American audiences who tune in to PBS' new series Ridley will be able to watch with confidence that it won't be the series only run of episodes. ITV confirmed the show had been renewed for a second season with only a few days until the show's premiere as part of the PBS Summer of Mysteries. The series, which stars Adrian Dunbar as titular Alex Ridley, the retired detective/hobbyist jazz singer, was a hit for the British broadcaster in the summer of 2022, with episodes averaging 6 million viewers over four installments. Despite that, the network waited until the series was about to arrive in the states before making the decision to renew official.

Inspired by real-life retired detectives re-joining the police in consultancy roles due to increasingly over-stretched resources, Ridley co-stars Bronagh Waugh as DI Carol Farman, Ridley's former protege who now leads the team. The early episodes reveal Ridley was forced into early retirement after a nervous breakdown brought on by the deaths of his wife and child a few months prior, and Season 1's arc is as much about him coming to terms with how they died and adjusting to his new life as it is a murder-of--the-week series.

Despite ITV waiting nearly a year before making the announcement, it's not that big of a surprise Ridley is returning for another round. Series creator Paul Matthew Thompson is a veteran of two long-running British detective series popular on both sides of the pond, Vera (currently filming Season 13) and Father Brown (currently streaming Season 10). Though critics and viewers complained when it debuted that Ridley is a very by-the-numbers formulaic series, Dunbar is a charming lead, and his tendency to break into song multiple times per episode at least gives the show a different flavor than its competition.

There is no official synopsis for Season 2 yet, but Season 1 concludes with Ridley finally accepting he needs therapy for the death of his wife and daughter while Farman and her wife have a new baby. With the two working together again, they'll take on four new feature-length cases.

Adrian Dunbar is confirmed to return as Alex Ridley, with co-star Bronagh Waugh as DI Carol Farman. The rest of the main cast is expected to return, including George Bukhari as DC Darren Lakhan, Georgie Glen as Dr. Wendy Newstone, and Terence Maynard as DCI Paul Goodwin. Julie Graham will most likely be back as Ridley's love interest Annie Marling, Bhavna Limbachia as Carol's wife, Geri Farman, and Tareq Al-Jeddal as their son Jack Farman. As for the house band of Steve Holness, Sophie Alloway, and Rory Dempsey, it's a good bet they'll be back to play anytime Dunbar starts singing.

Thompson will return to pen two episodes of Season 2, with his Vera co-writer Michael Bhim and Julia Gilbert (Midsomer Murders) picking up the other two stories. Directors for the second season have not been announced, but with filming confirmed to begin in August 2023, they are expected to be confirmed in due course, along with the guest stars for the new season. Thompson and series co-creator Jonathan Fisher, the Managing Director of West Road Pictures, will executive produce alongside Ingrid Goodwin. 

Ridley Season 1 will premiere on Sunday, June 18, 2023, at 8 p.m. ET on most PBS stations. All four episodes (divided into eight parts) will arrive as a binge-watch on PBS Passport the same day. Ridley Season 2 is expected to come to PBS after it airs on ITV. As always, check your local listings.