NIGHTSLEEPER: CASTING ANNOUNCED FOR SECOND SERIES OF HIT BBC THRILLER AS FILMING BEGINS
Casting has been announced for the second instalment of Nightsleeper, the hit real-time thriller written by the BAFTA and RTS award-winning Nick Leather and produced by Element Pictures, a Fremantle company.
The first series followed the fictional Heart of Britain sleeper train travelling from Glasgow to London, where two strangers were forced to work together to save the lives of its passengers. Launching in September 2024, the series became the BBC’s biggest new drama launch of the year, with episode one reaching 8.5 million viewers.
This time the action moves from the rails to the open water, as a new high-stakes thriller unfolds aboard a ship travelling across the Irish Sea - and behind every cabin door is another story, another surprise…
Joining the cast for the second series will be Christian Cooke (Love, Rosie), Sally Lindsay (The Madame Blanc Mysteries), Rupert Penry-Jones (Spooks), Madeleine Mantock (Breaking Brooklyn), Alexander Arnold (Save Me) and Ian McElhinney (Derry Girls).
Nick Leather says: “It’s so much fun to be embarking on a second Nightsleeper journey - and on a route I know so well, with the Belfast-to-Liverpool ferry as our new box of tricks. We’ve assembled a wonderful cast. I can’t wait to welcome the audience on board for a non-stop night to remember.”
Kate Harwood, Executive Producer, says: “Audiences embraced Nightsleeper in such a huge way, and we’re incredibly excited to return with a bold new story. Nick has once again created a brilliantly tense thriller packed with new characters, twists, emotion and edge-of-your-seat drama. We can’t wait to bring this new drama from the high seas.”
Lindsay Salt, Director of BBC Drama, says: “Series one of Nightsleeper was a breakout hit, thundering across the U.K. to reach millions of viewers. Series two brilliantly builds on everything that made the first so irresistible, and we could not be happier to be working with Nick, Kate and the team to bring it to BBC iPlayer and BBC One.”
Richard Williams, CEO of Northern Ireland Screen, says: “We’re proud to support Element Pictures and the BBC as Nightsleeper returns with an exciting new story rooted in the Irish Sea. It’s wonderful to see Northern Ireland’s world-class crew, locations and creative talent playing a part in bringing this ambitious series to audiences around the world.”
The first series of Nightsleeper is available to stream now on BBC iPlayer.
