How I Met Your Father fans are keen to get their hands on the next batch of episodes, following an emotional mid-season finale which saw Hilary Duff's Sophie turn her attention to finding her real father.

She was inspired by a brief appearance from Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris), who is the second How I Met Your Mother character to return for this sequel, following a season 1 cameo by Robin Sherbatsky (Secret Invasion's Cobie Smulders).

Although it's had a mixed reception from critics, How I Met Your Father has grown into one of the few traditional sitcoms to find an audience on streaming, with many viewers fully invested in the lives of this eccentric group of friends.

Fans of Duff's earlier role, Lizzie McGuire, have also found a lot to like from the show, with a recent Valentine's Day special hinting that Sophie and Lizzie could be the same person by integrating a clip from the Disney Channel classic.

Executive producer Elizabeeth Berger said (via Variety): “I’m not confirming that, but it felt like a really fun thing for us to do. We got a temperature check from Hilary, who has such good sense of humour. Then it was just about finding the right clip.

"We loved that we got to bring Lizzie into our world for a minute."

Read on for everything you need to know about How I Met Your Father season 2 – but be warned, there are spoilers ahead!

How I Met Your Father season 2 release date

How I Met Your Father
Hilary Duff and Francia Raisa in How I Met Your Father. Photo by: Patrick Wymore/Hulu

The first 11 episodes of How I Met Your Father season 2 landed on Disney Plus in the United Kingdom and Ireland on April 19th 2023, meaning they're available to watch now.

In the UK, episodes of How I Met Your Father arrive in binge-able batches some time after the US release, where the show is rolled out weekly on streaming service Hulu.

American fans can expect the remaining nine episodes to begin arriving from Tuesday 23rd May, which suggests that the back half of the season will drop in the UK in late July/early August 2023.

Of course, that's just an estimate for now. We'll update this page when Disney Plus UK announces a confirmed release date.

How I Met Your Father season 2 cast

The cast of How I Met Your Father
The cast of How I Met Your Father Hulu

Hilary Duff will definitely be back to front the second season of How I Met Your Father, with the former Lizzie McGuire star also serving as executive producer on this show.

She'll be joined by the quirky group of friends introduced in the first ten episodes, including best friend Valentina (Francia Raisa), aspiring musician Jessie (Chris Lowell) and his adoptive sister Ellen (Tien Tran).

More like this

There's also bar owner Sid (Suraj Sharma), who tied the knot with longtime partner Hannah (Ashley Reyes) in the series finale, and also threw disowned aristocrat Charlie (Tom Ainsley) a lifeline by hiring him as a bartender.

We're also likely to see the full return of Daniel Augustin's Ian, who was absent for much of the first season, but made a romantic surprise appearance in the finale.

Former Sex in the City star Kim Cattrall will also be back, playing an older version of Sophie in the show's flash-forward segments, where she is regaling her son with the story of how she met his father.

Will there be more How I Met Your Mother cameos?

Cobie Smulders in How I Met Your Mother
Cobie Smulders in How I Met Your Mother SEAC

How I Met Your Mother fans were shocked to see Cobie Smulders return as Robin in the season finale of this sequel, where she gives some life advice to Duff's new lead protagonist.

She was not the only familiar face from the original series, with other cameos including Kyle MacLachlan's The Captain and his wife Becky, as played by Laura Bell Bundy.

Joe Nieves also made a brief appearance as bartender Carl, who still works at MacLaren's Pub, a popular hangout spot among the How I Met Your Mother friendship group.

So could there be more cameos to come in season 2? Here's what co-showrunner Elizabeth Berger told RadioTimes.com.

"We exist in the same universe as the original and that means that, whether it's another set, whether it's a person from the original, these kinds of things can populate our world."

She added: "And we think that we fulfil that notion in a really satisfying way, even in this season, and hope to continue to do so in future seasons."

That said, following Robin's reveal in the season one finale, director Pam Fryman described the Smulders cameo as "a gift instead of a promise" (via TVLine), so don't necessarily place all your hopes on seeing more from the original cast.

Is there a How I Met Your Father season 2 trailer?

Yes! You can watch the How I Met Your Father season 2 trailer below:

How I Met Your Father is available to stream on Disney Plus. Check out more of our Comedy coverage or visit our TV Guide to see what's on tonight.

Try Radio Times magazine today and get 12 issues for only £1 with delivery to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.