Can You Keep a Secret? confirmed to return for season 2 as Dawn French promises "havoc"
The Fendons aren't finished yet.
The BBC has confirmed that Dawn French-led sitcom Can You Keep a Secret? will return for a second season, which is good news for any viewers left reeling by that cliffhanger finale.
The quirky comedy follows Debbie Fendon (French) as she attempts to hold on to her husband's life insurance money, which pays out after he is mistakenly declared dead by a rather incompetent doctor.
The cast of Can You Keep a Secret? packed plenty of star power, with Friday Night Dinner's Mark Heap, Doctor Who's Mandip Gill and Bad Neighbours' Craig Roberts also starring. The comical quartet are all returning for season 2.
The exciting renewal comes after the first episode of Can You Keep a Secret? attracted an audience of 5.3 million over its first 28 days, with more than half of that number coming from BBC iPlayer.
Reacting to the news, French commented: "As chuffed as an actual chuff to hear that we have a second series! More chance for Debbie to get her bossy boots on and create further havoc... hooray."
Over the course of the first season, more and more people caught on to Debbie's scam, making her family a target of blackmail and putting them all at risk of jail time. Nevertheless, she remained determined that she could salvage the bizarre situation.
This Country producer Simon Mayhew-Archer created the series, basing the character of eccentric patriarch William (Heap) partly on his own father, who also lives with Parkinson's disease.
Mayhew-Archer said: "Making this series was a joyous experience. Comedy is a team game, and Dawn, Mark, Craig, Mandip and the whole cast and crew are dream collaborators.
"I love sitcoms and I want more of them on TV, so I am enormously grateful to everyone who has watched this show and taken the Fendons to their hearts. I hope our success will help even more comedy get made across the UK. It's one of our national superpowers – and we need it!"
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Executive producer Kenton Allen praised Can You Keep a Secret? for combining "a brilliantly mischievous premise with genuine emotional truth," which has "all the hallmarks of an enduring modern classic".
Jon Petrie, BBC director of comedy commissioning, added: "The response to Can You Keep a Secret? has been fantastic... We're delighted to bring it back for a second series and can't wait to see even more secrets unravel."
Can You Keep a Secret? is available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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Authors
David Craig is the Senior Drama Writer for Radio Times, covering the latest and greatest scripted drama and comedy across television and streaming. Previously, he worked at Starburst Magazine, presented The Winter King Podcast for ITVX and studied Journalism at the University of Sheffield.
