AMANDALAND: MOTHERLAND SPIN-OFF CONFIRMED FOR SECOND SERIES AFTER RATINGS SUCCESS
The hit BBC comedy Amandaland, starring Lucy Punch, Joanna Lumley and Philippa Dunne, is officially returning to iPlayer and BBC One after a standout debut.
Since launching, Amandaland has averaged 6.4M viewers to date, making it the BBC’s second biggest comedy launch in recent years (excluding specials), behind Ludwig (9.5M) and on par with The Outlaws (6.4M), according to the latest data.
The series has also been a hit with younger audiences, drawing 0.9M 16-34s, the biggest BBC comedy audience in this demographic since The Cleaner in 2021.
Produced by Merman, Amandaland follows Lucy Punch as Amanda, who in series one had to downsize and up sticks to South Harlesden, or as the estate agent called it SoHa (definitely not the area around Wormwood Scrubs prison) post her divorce.
With both Manus and Georgie at secondary school, Amanda had to try and get her head around raising teenagers, dealing with modern motherhood horrors like teenage drinking, fake Instagram accounts and eco anxiety. Not even a woman as certain of her parenting as Amanda could deal with those nightmares alone.
Amanda’s mother Felicity (Joanna Lumley) was constantly around, and completely in denial that she was, in fact, lonely. Theirs is a slightly unhealthy co-dependent relationship based on backhanded compliments and veiled snipes about her new home.
After a brief spell of freedom, Anne (Philippa Dunne) was sucked back into being Amanda’s minion to help her navigate the social scene with the other parents at the children’s new school. Thank God for Anne.
The first series also introduced a host of new characters, including Amanda’s long-suffering downstairs neighbour Mal (Samuel Anderson) and JJ (Ekow Quartey), the stepfather to Mal’s son Ned, as well as power couple Della and Fi (Siobhán McSweeney and Rochenda Sandall) and smooth-talking South African property developer Johannes (Peter Serafinowicz).
Co-writer and creator Holly Walsh says: “We've been bowled over by the response to Amandaland and can't wait to get co-labbing on the next series.”
Sharon Horgan, Co-Founder of Merman says: “With any new show you put out there, your main hope is to make something you love and are proud of. The extra bonus is that it's a critical hit. But to have a loyal audience of this size is just beyond your hopes and expectations. The incredible cast and writers, director and production team worked so hard on this show and it's so wonderful to see that hard work pay off. Special thanks to Lucy for being the most extraordinary front woman and to the BBC for having such faith in the idea of Amandaland from the off.”
Tanya Qureshi, Head of Comedy at the BBC says: “We always had high hopes for Amandaland, but it’s been amazing to see how much viewers have embraced not just the returning characters, but the brilliant new additions too. We’re so thrilled to reunite with this talented team for another instalment of Amanda’s new life in SoHa.”
Amandaland was created by Sharon Horgan (Bad Sisters, Catastrophe), Holly Walsh (Motherland, The Other One, Dead Boss), Helen Serafinowicz (Motherland, Nova Jones), and Barunka O'Shaughnessy (Breeders, Trying, Motherland). It was written by Holly Walsh, Helen Serafinowicz, Barunka O'Shaughnessy and Laurence Rickard (Ghosts, Yonderland). Lionsgate distributes the series worldwide.