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Nightsleeper Series 2: Colin Morgan, Madeleine Mantock and Christian Cooke Lead BBC Thriller

Nikki Murray

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L-R: Colin Morgan (Image: Ruth Crafer), Madeleine Mantock (Image: Kim Hardy) and Christian Cooke (Image: Fabrice Jacobs)

Nightsleeper is returning to BBC One and BBC iPlayer with a largely new cast and a very different journey ahead, as Colin Morgan, Madeleine Mantock and Christian Cooke take the lead in Series 2.

The new six-part series is currently filming in Belfast and moves the real-time thriller away from the railway setting of its first outing. This time, a Belfast-to-Liverpool passenger ferry becomes the target of a potentially deadly cyberattack, leaving its crew fighting to keep control of the vessel while trying to prevent passengers from discovering just how serious the situation has become.

Who Is in the Nightsleeper Series 2 Cast?

Colin Morgan will star as Stephen “Bo” Bowen, the new technical director of the National Cyber Security Centre, with Madeleine Mantock playing Beth and Christian Cooke taking on the role of the ferry’s second engineer Johnny.

They will be joined by Rupert Penry-Jones as Richard, Ian McElhinney as Charlie and Sally Lindsay as Lisa. Alexander Arnold plays Feeny, Lydia Page stars as Lola, Christine Bottomley plays Tanya, Julie Dray appears as Ray and Pooky Quesnel joins as Sam.

L-R: Rupert Penry-Jones (Image: Hamish Brown), Ian McElhinney (Image: Chris Hill) and Sally Lindsay (Image: Yellow Belly)

The wider ensemble also includes Jonathan Harden as Simon, Mickey Mason as Damian, Kevin Harvey as Tony, Cúán Hosty-Blaney as Liam, Eileen O’Higgins as Jo, Samuel Edward-Cook as Connor, Emily Flain as Eabha, Tareq Al-Jeddal as Albie and Sam Hoare as Rusper.

L-R: Top – Alexander Arnold (Image: James Barrett), Lydia Page, Christine Bottomley (Image: Faye Thomas), Julie Dray (Image: Michael Shelford). Bottom – Pooky Quesnel (Image: Ruth Crafer), Cúán Hosty-Blaney (Image: Yellow Belly), Parth Thakerar (Image: Matt Squire), Jonjo O’Neill (Image: Eleanor Howarth) and Micah Balfour (Image: Michael Wharley)

There will also be some familiar faces from Series 1. Parth Thakerar, Jonjo O’Neill and Micah Balfour will reprise their roles as Saj, Hud and Leon respectively.

What Is Nightsleeper Series 2 About?

Series 2 swaps the railway for open water, with the action unfolding aboard a Belfast-to-Liverpool passenger ferry after the vessel becomes the target of a hack attack. As the crew tries to conceal the scale of the threat from those onboard, second engineer Johnny is forced to work with Bo at the National Cyber Security Centre to fight back. The situation becomes increasingly dangerous as problems begin to spread both onboard the ferry and on land, while secrets among those involved start to come to the surface.

Series creator and writer Nick Leather described the Belfast-to-Liverpool ferry as the show’s new “box-of-tricks”, with the location allowing the thriller to take its real-time format into a completely new setting.

Who Is Making Nightsleeper Series 2?

Nick Leather returns as writer for the six new hour-long episodes, with James Kent and Chris Baugh directing. Element Pictures, the company behind Normal People and The Cage, is producing the series for BBC One and BBC iPlayer with support from Northern Ireland Screen.

Kate Harwood, Rachel Dargavel, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe and Christopher Aird executive produce for Element Pictures alongside Leather and Kent, while Gaynor Holmes serves as executive producer for the BBC. Jonathan Curling is series producer and Maria Mulhall is producer.

BBC Drama director Lindsay Salt said the team was “thrilled” to have Colin Morgan, Madeleine Mantock and Christian Cooke leading the new series, adding that viewers can expect another tense journey when Nightsleeper returns.

There is no confirmed transmission date for Series 2 yet. Filming is currently underway in Belfast, while the first series remains available to watch on BBC iPlayer.

For CultureCues, we loved the first series of Nightsleeper, and we might be slightly biased because that Scottish cast was so good. Season 2 already sounds like a very different journey, though. Moving the story from a train to a ferry is a great change, especially with that mix of being trapped together in a contained space while surrounded by open water. It should make the whole thing feel even more tense once things start going wrong. And while we will miss some of the original faces, this new cast is seriously impressive. Colin Morgan, Madeleine Mantock and Christian Cooke leading a line-up that also includes Rupert Penry-Jones, Ian McElhinney and Sally Lindsay has us very much looking forward to this one.

Nightsleeper Series 2 is currently filming in Belfast and will return to BBC One and BBC iPlayer.