After the Flood's Sophie Rundle teases potential third season as storyline has "life in it"

*Warning: Contains major spoilers for After the Flood season 2.*

Like its predecessor, the After the Flood season 2 finale carries a sense of finality – while still leaving the door ajar for a possible return.

The murders of Xav Palmer and Todd Drake were finally solved, and viewers learned who was responsible for polluting the river running through Waterside.

But Jo's world was shattered when Mackie murdered Pat in cold blood, leaving her utterly bereft – and fundamentally altering the landscape of After the Flood should it return.

There was some justice, at least, when Mackie was arrested, and with forensic evidence and data from the tracker Pat had secretly placed on his car, it seems likely he will be sent down. Meanwhile, Jill Halfpenny's DS Sam Bradley – revealed to be an anti-corruption officer – will surely launch an investigation into Mackie in light of the serious allegations against him.

Pat had succeeded in tracking down Saskia Bale, one of the young people fostered by Mackie and later exploited as part of his criminal schemes. Her testimony could prove the first crucial piece in finally exposing him.

But will viewers get a front-row seat to what happens next?

"I think it [season 3] works because [writer] Mick [Ford] and the other writers have built a community of people," Sophie Rundle told RadioTimes.com. "That's the key to making it feel alive. There are always stories to tell when it feels like a real group of dynamic people.

"And I do think it's sort of left–you always want to see what happens next."

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Rundle also pointed to the show's "great reception and great feedback", adding that for her, the audience response matters just as much as the critical one.

"You might be in something that's very critically acclaimed, but actually nobody's watched it,” she said. "It's the ones where you're in the supermarket and people say, 'Oh, we loved you in After the Flood – that was so good.'

"They're the ones I really like being in. You think, 'Oh yeah, I want to do more because people enjoyed watching.' If the appetite's there, then great."

After the Floods airs on ITV1 and ITVX.

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