Rivals Is Back Next Month, Here’s All We Know
At last, it’s almost time for the eagerly awaited return of Dame Jilly Cooper’s raunchy comedy drama Rivals, with season 2 set to drop next month. After the smash hit that was the first season, expectations are high ahead of what looks to be an even more outlandish second outing back to Rutshire. The big names from Season 1 are back, including Aidan Turner, David Tennant and Alex Hassell, with a few faces- most notably Hayley Atwell and Rupert Everett. Here’s what to expect:
What will Rivals season 2 be about?
Based on the already popular novels by Cooper, Rivals season 1 cleared the book-to-screen bar and became a hit not just with viewers but also critics, praising its outlandish, fun characters and storyline. Set in Rutshire (a fictional town, but located in the Cotswolds), it follows the lives of a number of residents in the 1980s and their sexually charged exploits. This new set of episodes will continue to have all the same fun and scandalousness, and will follow the ever-increasing fight between Corininum Television (run by Tennant’s character Tony, Lord Baddingham) and its rivals. Lord Baddingham has some scores to settle, too, not least because he got a nasty head wound after being hit on the head with a TV award in a particularly dramatic scene at the end of season 1.
The culprit was Cameron (played by Nafessa Williams) due to the Corinium boss attacking her first for saying she wanted to marry Rupert (Hassell), and despite it appearing Tony might be dead, it’s clear he’s very much alive. Speaking of Rupert, we’ll be meeting his ex-wife and the mother of his kids, Helen, played by Hayley Atwell, which is sure to add to the drama. Rupert was getting pretty close to Taggie (Bella Maclean) by the end of last season- will their relationship go the next step further this time around? Aidan Turner’s Declan O’Hara, a TV journalist, is also back with his own troubles, including a fraught personal life and keeping his dogged commitment to integrity together.
The cast
A quick teaser trailer was released by Disney+ a few weeks ago, filled with all the stuff you’d expect: more parties, more rivalries, and more steaminess (literally, it seems, given a glimpse at a shower scene), while a more detailed trailer should be right around the corner.
Other returning cast members include Victoria Smurfit, Katherine Parkinson, Danny Dyer and Emily Atack. New addition Rupert Everett, meanwhile, will be joining Atwell and playing Helen Gordon’s current husband.
Release date
Rivals Season 2 will be roaring back onto our screens on 15th May on Disney+, with the first set of six episodes, releasing weekly after the third episode. The second part will be arriving later.
