A Woman of Substance to return for a series 2 with Emma Harte 'determined to make the Fairley family pay'
She'll also endure devastating loss...
A Woman of Substance will be back for a series 2, Channel 4 has confirmed. And this time, Emma Harte is even more determined to get revenge on the Fairley family.
Brenda Blethyn and Jessica Reynolds will both return in the role of the iconic lead character. Viewers first met her in this year’s series 1, and saw her transformation from a housemaid to a multi-millionaire media mogul.
Based on the Barbara Taylor Bradford novels of the same name, series one of A Woman of Substance was Channel 4’s most-watched drama in five years since It’s a Sin.
Here’s everything you need to know about A Woman of Substance series 2.
Is there a series 2 of A Woman of Substance?
Channel 4 has now confirmed that there will be series 2 of A Woman of Substance. The first series ended with Emma’s granddaughter and chosen heir, Paula, revealing that she had secretly married into the Fairley family. Of course, this potentially undid a lifetime of Emma’s revenge…
Fans will know that Emma Harte vowed revenge on her former employers the Fairleys. As a young maid at Fairley Hall, she fell in love with Edwin Fairley. When she became pregnant, he refused to marry her and cast her out in disgrace. She holds the Fairleys directly responsible for her father’s tragic death in their mill and blames them for her mother’s declining health.
In A Woman of Substance series 2, viewers will rejoin the “unstoppable Emma Harte as she emerges from World War I and strides into the glittering, fast changing world of the 1920s”.
The synopsis tells us: “Emma’s ambition for the Harte name is unrelenting, as is her determination to make the Fairley family pay. But she has passion to contend with, in the form of the infuriatingly charismatic Paul McGill. And she’ll also endure devastating loss and face unexpected betrayals from those she holds most dear.”
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Meanwhile in the 1970s, Emma battles to win back her life’s work from Jim Fairley. It’s one thing to reach the top, and another to stay there…
Who’s in the cast?
Vera icon Brenda Blethyn will return as the older Emma Harte, in 70s New York.
Meanwhile, Outlanders Jessica Reynolds will return to the Channel 4 series as the younger Emma Harte.
Channel 4 has yet to announce any other cast members.
When’s the start date?
Filming will commence in Yorkshire later this year. So it’ll be a while before it hits our screens.
We’re expecting it to arrive sometime in 2027.
How many episodes is A Woman of Substance series 2?
The upcoming drama will be eight episodes of an hour each. This is the same as series 1.
Katherine Jakeways (The Buccaneers) will return to write series two, alongside Roanne Bardsley (The Buccaneers, Screw).
‘Emma Harte is a woman who refuses to be defeated by poverty’
Talking about the upcoming series, Trustee of The Barbara Taylor Bradford Trust H.E. Vicki Downey said: “Emma Harte is a woman who refuses to be defeated by poverty, by betrayal and by the limitations others place upon her. That story has resonated with readers for nearly five decades, and it is clear from the response to the new TV adaptation that audiences feel exactly the same connection. There is so much more of Emma’s world to explore.”
Writers and executive producers Katherine Jakeways and Roanne Bardsley added: “We couldn’t be more delighted to be back with our beloved Emma Harte. The higher she climbs, the greater the risks, and we’re looking forward to more of everything we adore – heart-soaring romance, gut-wrenching loss, and of course, delicious revenge.”
