House of Guinness star’s sibling drama officially renewed for season 2 as plot details confirmed

The BBC has announced that The Walsh Sisters is returning for season 2, while also confirming the plot details and revealing new cast members.

Based on the novels by best-selling author Marian Keyes, the series stars Louisa Harland (Derry Girls), Caroline Menton (All Creatures Great and Small), Stefanie Preissner (Can't Cope, Won’t Cope), Danielle Galligan (House of Guinness) and Máiréad Tyers (My Lady Jane) as sisters Anna, Rachel, Maggie, Claire and Helen, as they navigate adulthood and life in Dublin and grapple with heartbreak, addiction grief and parenthood.

According to the official synopsis, season 2 – which is based on based on Keyes’ novels The Mystery of Mercy Close and Angels – will see Rachel step outside the family bubble to navigate recovery on her own terms, which is soon complicated when an encounter with a familiar face tests her newfound independence.

Claire, meanwhile, defies the traditional expectations placed on her as a mother compared to her ex’s responsibilities as a father, while Maggie’s quest to become the perfect family takes an unexpected turn at a marital crossroads.

Helen, meanwhile, becomes overprotective of her sisters while struggling with her emotional wellbeing, and Anna tries some unusual methods to get over heartbreak, while Daddy Walsh remains oblivious to the drama.

Season 2 will see the core quintet return, as well as Aidan Quinn as Daddy Walsh and Carrie Crowley as Mammy Walsh.

New additions to the cast include Peter Coonan (Bad Sisters) as David, Rachel’s fellow recovering addict, Aislín McGuckin (Normal People) as Patsy Costello, Luke’s mother, Art Campion (How to Get to Heaven from Belfast) as the sisters' old schoolfriend, and Fay Ripley (Cold Feet) as marriage counsellor Sharon.

Behind the camera, Stefanie Preissner is once again serving as creative lead and writer on the series.

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Keyes, who serves as executive producer on the series, previously told Radio Times that season 1 made her "fill up with joy".

"I knew Stefanie already, and I knew her work, and I recommended her as a writer because I really, really hoped that she would adapt it," she explained. "But you don't know [how the series will turn out].

"The books are going to be altered as they're adapted, and then actors are going to interpret the role in the way that feels appropriate to them," elaborated Keyes.

"They will be directed by a director who has their own vision, and then it has to be edited, [so] it's impossible to exert any control. My attitude was like, 'Go with God, fly free my pretties.'"

Fortunately, she liked the end product. "You cannot anticipate the outcome [but] I do feel incredibly happy. I genuinely love it and it just makes me fill up with joy... Even if I hadn't, I wouldn't have complained, because you get what you get."

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