W1A sequel confirmed as Hugh Bonneville returns for Twenty Twenty Six

It reads: "Having previously held a leadership role on the London Games of Twenty Twelve and a spell in W1A as the Head of Values at the BBC, Ian Fletcher (Hugh Bonneville) is now bound for the greatest stage in world football.

"Next year’s tournament will be the biggest ever. Hosted by the USA, Canada, and Mexico with 48 countries taking part and 16 venues thousands of miles apart across the whole of North America; what could possibly go wrong?

"Ian Fletcher is about to find out, as he joins the Twenty Twenty Six Oversight Team in Miami as its Director of Integrity."

The release also included a quote from Fletcher himself, with the character saying: "In terms of the Integrity role, to borrow a soccer analogy, this is a rare opportunity to set out your own goals and then score them on the global stage."

In addition to Bonneville, the cast for the series will include Nick Blood (Slow Horses), Chelsey Crisp (Fresh Off the Boat), Paulo Costanzo (Designated Survivor), Stephen Kunken (The Handmaid’s Tale), Jimena Larraguivel (Patience), Alexis Michalik (A Love Story) and Belinda Stewart-Wilson (The Inbetweeners).

The six-part series is once again written and directed by John Morton – who was behind both Twenty Twelve and W1A – who explained that he was desperate to explore what Ian Fletcher had been up to recently.

"The last I heard he was still recovering from a serious Mindfulness Course in Somerset," he said. "So, it’s great to hear that he’s made it back and has re-emerged in his natural habitat at the centre of a well-known institution, but now on the world stage and facing his biggest opportunity yet to get things right.

"I’m thrilled and hugely grateful to the BBC for giving me the chance to follow him again, this time all the way to Miami, and I literally can’t wait to see what happens.”

Meanwhile, the BBC's Director of Comedy Jon Petrie said: "We’ll miss Ian’s invaluable contribution to the BBC as Head of Values but how could he resist getting the call-up to be a part of one of the most expansive and ambitious sporting events in the world. We wish him, and the team, all the best.”

The new series had previously been rumoured back in May 2024 after former W1A cast member Sarah Parish referenced the project during an appearance on That Gaby Roslin podcast.

Ian Fletcher was first introduced in Twenty Twelve, which poked fun at the organising committee for the London Summer Olympics, before going on to appear in all three seasons of W1A between 2014 and 2017.

The series briefly returned for a short one-off lockdown special in 2020, which saw Fletcher chairing the first virtual meeting of the BBC's COVID-19 Bounce Back Group, while last year, the cast reunited once again for a Comic Relief skit.

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