BBC’s Popular Gaelic Drama To Return For Series 2

From Regency romances filmed in Wales to gang dramas shot in Glasgow, the BBC has made a concerted effort to extend its filming footprint to the entirety of the UK in recent years, ensuring everyone gets to see their local spots on the small screen.

But An t-Eilean was special. Cast your mind back: this four-part Scottish Gaelic-language drama aired in January 2025, and centred on DS Kat Crichton (Sorcha Groundsell), a young family liaison officer tasked with investigating the brutal murder of Lady Mary, the wife of a local tycoon, at their remote island mansion. Filmed in 2024 on the Isle of Harris – the southern part of Lewis and Harris – it showcased the Outer Hebrides’ breathtaking beauty, from windswept white sand beaches to clear azure seas. (And if that sounds familiar, you might remember champion Traitor Stephen Libby hails from the Isle of Lewis.)

With an inaugural series of four episodes, An t-Eilean (or The Island in English) originally aired on BBC Alba, the British broadcaster’s evenings-only Gaelic-language TV channel which broadcasts everything from news to sport, dramas to kids’ programmes. With Alba being the Gaelic word for Scotland, the shows broadcast on this small channel are also available on-demand on BBC iPlayer – and this is where An t-Eilean found its surprisingly large audience, far larger than the 60,000 fluent Gaelic speakers who live in Scotland.

With the news that the BBC has renewed An t-Eilean for a second series, we’ve put our own detective hats on and gathered everything we know so far.

Kat Crichton (SORCHA GROUNDSELL) in An t-Eilean with Castle behind her. (Black Camel Pictures/BBCAlba/John Maher)

An t-Eilean/The Island Series 2: Plot, Cast, Release Date & More

When it aired in January 2025, An t-Eilean marked a watershed moment for the BBC: the four-part crime drama was the British broadcaster’s first high-end Gaelic drama. And by high-end, we mean more than £1 million was spent creating each episode – and it seems to have paid off.

After big success (though the BBC hasn’t revealed its exact viewing figures, the series did bag some award nominations and international interest), An t-Eilean is set to return for series 2, with filming scheduled to commence on location in Scotland’s Western Isles in Spring.

Created by Nicholas Osborne, this time Mairead Hamilton joins him as a co-writer as we return to the life of DS Kat Crichton, who has a new case to crack…

Kat Crichton (SORCHA GROUNDSELL) in An t-Eilean. (Black Camel Pictures/BBC Alba/John Murdo MacAulay)

What Will Happen?

After the events of series 1, An t-Eilean series 2 will reintroduce us to Kat (Sorcha Groundsell), who is struggling to feel inspired both at work (dealing with petty local crime) and home (caring for her ill father). But when the body of a young woman washes up, Kat is thrust into a new investigation, hunting for a killer stalking the remote island she calls home.

As the investigation deepens – and Kat comes face-to-face with her former nemesis Ruaraidh MacLean (Sam James Smith), now running the local youth group – the detective unveils devastating secrets about the small community’s young people.

Thus ensues a terrifying and twisted story which pulls Kat and Ruaraidh into a world of unexpected and chilling corruption in the hunt for a serial killer.

As well as helping to write the series, Hamilton has signed on as co-director, with series 1 director Tom O’Sullivan back to lead the project.

Kat Crichton (SORCHA GROUNDSELL) in An t-Eilean. (Black Camel Pictures/BBC Alba/John Murdo MacAulay)

The Cast

The BBC is keeping most cast details under wraps for now, but we do know Isle of Lewis local and fluent Scottish Gaelic speaker Sorcha Groundsell will return to lead An t-Eilean series 2 as Detective Sergeant Kat Critchton.

The BBC has also revealed Sam James Smith will return to his role as Ruaraidh MacLean, now the local youth group leader after his mother Lady Mary was shot dead in series 1.

Kat Crichton (SORCHA GROUNDSELL) & Sine MacLean (MEREDITH BROOKS) in An t-Eilean. (Black Camel Pictures/BBCAlba/John Maher)

Filming Locations

After An t-Eilean series 1 was filmed in Harris – the southern part of Lewis and Harris – the BBC has revealed series 2 will be filmed, for the most part, back in the Western Isles. Also known as the Outer Hebrides, these islands include Lewis and Harris, North and South Uist and Barra.

BBC Alba’s commissioning editor Bill MacLeod promises: ‘An t-Eilean will once again transport viewers to one of the most dramatic landscapes in the world with a taut and twisty story that will keep them on the edge of their seats until the final few frames.’

Of course this isn’t the first time we’ve seen crime go down on Scotland’s remote isles: the long-running drama Shetland is set and shot on the eponymous islands, the northeasternmost part of the UK.

Release Date

No specific news from BBC Alba just yet, but we expect An t-Eilean series 2 to air in 2027. It will be made up of four episodes.

All four episodes of An t-Eilean series 1 are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

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